loser English · revision 10548

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=before 1340|origins=en lose}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /ˈluː.zə/, US /ˈluː.zɚ/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is an agent noun from [[lose]] and [[-er]].^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A destroyer, a sense now obsolete: before 1340 in the OED, the mid-14th century in Etymonline.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ One who loses or suffers loss is from 1548 in the OED and Merriam-Webster, the 1540s in Etymonline,^(OED 1989)^(MWU 2024)^(Etymonline) and a waster of time from 1650.^(OED 1989) The ''good'' or ''bad loser'', who takes defeat well or badly, is from 1892,^(OED 1989) and a horse that loses a race from 1902.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) An unsuccessful or incompetent person, a habitual failure, is recorded by 1955, in American student slang.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 1340 – a destroyer.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1548 – one who suffers loss.^(OED 1989)^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1892 – a bad loser.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1902 – a losing horse.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1955 – a failure (slang).^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A person or team that loses a contest.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A person who takes defeat in a given way: ''a bad loser''.^(AHD)

+ # ''(informal)'' A person who fails consistently; a [[failure]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(bridge)'' A card that will not take a trick.^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[nonloser]]

+ * [[two-time loser]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[losel]]

+ * [[lose]]

+ * [[loss]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}