lossy

[ law-see, los-ee ]

adjectiveElectricity.

(of a material or transmission line) causing appreciable loss or dissipation of energy.

Origin of lossy

First recorded in 1945–50; loss + -y¹

Words Nearby lossy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use lossy in a sentence

Wi-Fi audio makes this particularly clear because it comes in higher fidelity than lossy Bluetooth broadcasts.
Tivoli Audio Model One Digital (Gen. 2) review: One and done? | Erin Behan | September 13, 2021 | Popular-Science
Pro photographers typically shoot in raw because it maintains image data that’s outside the scope of what a lossy format like JPEG can handle.
Planning to buy an iPhone 12 Pro Max? You may want to brush up on your photography skills. | Stan Horaczek | October 14, 2020 | Popular-Science
Which Buddy did as quick as a wink, and lossy-me and a pancake!
Buddy And Brighteyes Pigg | Howard R. Garis

British Dictionary definitions for lossy

lossy

/ (ˈlɒsɪ) /

adjective

(of a dielectric material, transmission line, etc) designed to have a high attenuation; dissipating energy: lossy line Compare lossless

Origin of lossy

C20: from loss

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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