at a loss
Idioms-
Below cost, as in The store was doing so badly that it was selling merchandise at a loss .
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Puzzled, perplexed, in a state of uncertainty, as in When his letters were returned unopened, John was at a loss as to what to do next . This usage was originally applied to hounds who had lost the scent or track of their prey. [Mid-1600s]
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at a loss for words . Unable or uncertain as to what to say. For example, Father's tirade left us all at a loss for words . [Late 1600s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Doubling down, she even insists she’s never told a life in her life — a claim that momentarily leaves Fielder at a loss for words.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
"We are at a loss for words after the tragic news," the family spokesperson, told the ZBC.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
Tax-loss selling, of course, is the practice of selling stocks held at a loss in order to offset any capital gains that investors may have realized earlier in the year.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026
In one sequence, he imagines his reply to an interlocutor: “Because she is unknown,” he says, and then, at a loss, “I don’t know.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
I guess I’m kind of at a loss.
From "Leah on the Offbeat" by Becky Albertalli
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
