miss

[ mis ]

/ mɪs /

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See synonyms for miss on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to fail to hit or strike: to miss a target.

to fail to encounter, meet, catch, etc.: to miss a train.

to fail to take advantage of: to miss a chance.

to fail to be present at or for: to miss a day of school.

to notice the absence or loss of: When did you first miss your wallet?

to regret the absence or loss of: I miss you all dreadfully.

to escape or avoid: He just missed being caught.

to fail to perceive or understand: to miss the point of a remark.

verb (used without object)

to fail to hit something.

to fail of effect or success; be unsuccessful.

noun

a failure to hit something.

a failure of any kind.

an omission.

a misfire.

Verb Phrases

miss out, Chiefly British. to omit; leave out.

miss out on, to fail to take advantage of, experience, etc.: You missed out on a great opportunity.

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Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Idioms about miss

miss fire. fire (def. 55).

Origin of miss

First recorded before 900; Middle English missen, mis(e), Old English missan; cognate with Old Frisian missa, Middle Low German, Middle Dutch, Old High German missen, Old Norse missa “to fail to hit or reach”

OTHER WORDS FROM miss

miss·a·ble, adjectiveun·miss·a·ble, adjectiveun·missed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH miss

midst, missed , mist

Other definitions for miss (2 of 4)

miss²

[ mis ]

/ mɪs /

noun, plural miss·es.

(initial capital letter) a title of respect for an unmarried woman, conventionally prefixed to her name or to the name of that which she represents: Miss Mary Jones; Miss Sweden.

(used by itself, as a term of address, especially to a young woman): Miss, please bring me some ketchup.

(initial capital letter) a title prefixed to a mock surname used to represent a particular attribute of the person, especially one excessively prominent: Miss Innocent; Miss Congeniality.

a young unmarried woman; girl: a radiant miss of 18 or so.

misses,

a range of sizes, chiefly from 6 to 20, for garments that fit women of average height and build.
the department or section of a store where these garments are sold.
a garment in this size range.

Origin of miss

First recorded in 1600–10; short for mistress

usage note for miss

See Ms.

Other definitions for miss (3 of 4)

miss.

abbreviation

mission.

missionary.

Other definitions for miss (4 of 4)

Miss.

abbreviation

Mississippi.

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

How to use miss in a sentence

These amounts of two to four inches were slightly below Capital Weather Gang’s forecast of three to five inches, but not a huge miss.
After 2 to 4 inches of snow, an icy night ahead in D.C. area. Snow showers possible Monday.|Jason Samenow, Dan Stillman, Andrew Freedman|February 1, 2021|Washington Post
The links between planets are tenuous, and easily broken by common solar system drama such as a near miss with a passing star, or if one planet sends another one flying.
These 6 exoplanets somehow orbit their star in perfect rhythm|Charlie Wood|January 27, 2021|Popular-Science
That miss, according to ESPN, ended a streak of 48 straight successful field goals for Tucker in the fourth quarter and overtime, including the postseason.
Lamar Jackson gets his first playoff victory as Ravens hold Titans’ Derrick Henry to 40 yards|Mark Maske|January 10, 2021|Washington Post
Any educated person should know what Bayesian reasoning is, or making a decision under uncertainty in a way that trades off the harm of false alarms with the harm of misses.
“We Get All Our Great Stuff from Europe — Including Witch Hunting.” (Ep. 446)|Steven D. Levitt|January 7, 2021|Freakonomics

Google has the ability to request entity-based sentiment, but we decided against using it as the correct labeling of the companies as entities seemed hit or miss.
Brand reputation and the impact of Google SERP selections|JR Oakes|December 23, 2020|Search Engine Land
I was getting real missable again, when I saw a card slipping in under our state-room door.
Harper's Young People, November 30, 1880|Various
I was too missable to answer him, and he wouldn't have heard me if I had, for he ran away as fast as he could to play with Nettie.
Harper's Young People, November 30, 1880|Various
She's a missable little thing to any one who likes her, and she can tempt him to speak out in spite of himself when he gets back.
Everyman's Land|C. N. Williamson and A. M. Williamson
The end of the hole was that Bobby, by holing a very missable putt, did get a four, and Herman took five and lost the hole.
Fifty Years of Golf|Horace G. Hutchinson

British Dictionary definitions for miss (1 of 4)

miss¹

/ (mɪs) /

verb

to fail to reach, hit, meet, find, or attain (some specified or implied aim, goal, target, etc)

(tr) to fail to attend or be present forto miss a train; to miss an appointment

(tr) to fail to see, hear, understand, or perceiveto miss a point

(tr) to lose, overlook, or fail to take advantage ofto miss an opportunity

(tr) to leave out; omitto miss an entry in a list

(tr) to discover or regret the loss or absence ofhe missed his watch; she missed him

(tr) to escape or avoid (something, esp a danger), usually narrowlyhe missed death by inches

miss the boat or miss the bus to lose an opportunity

noun

a failure to reach, hit, meet, find, etc

give something a miss informal to avoid (something)give the lecture a miss; give the pudding a miss

Derived forms of miss

missable, adjective

Word Origin for miss

Old English missan (meaning: to fail to hit); related to Old High German missan, Old Norse missa

British Dictionary definitions for miss (2 of 4)

miss²

/ (mɪs) /

noun

informal an unmarried woman or girl, esp a schoolgirl

Word Origin for miss

C17: shortened form of mistress

British Dictionary definitions for miss (3 of 4)

Miss

/ (mɪs) /

noun

a title of an unmarried woman or girl, usually used before the surname or sometimes alone in direct address

Word Origin for Miss

C17: shortened from mistress

British Dictionary definitions for miss (4 of 4)

Miss.

abbreviation for

Mississippi

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with miss

miss

In addition to the idioms beginning with miss

miss a beat
miss by a mile
miss fire
miss is as good as a mile, a
miss much
miss out on
miss the boat
miss the point

also see:

heart misses a beat
hit or miss
near miss
not miss a trick

miss

Idioms about miss

Origin of miss

OTHER WORDS FROM miss

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH miss

Other definitions for miss (2 of 4)

Origin of miss

usage note for miss

Other definitions for miss (3 of 4)

Other definitions for miss (4 of 4)

Words related to miss

How to use miss in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for miss (1 of 4)

Derived forms of miss

Word Origin for miss

British Dictionary definitions for miss (2 of 4)

Word Origin for miss

British Dictionary definitions for miss (3 of 4)

Word Origin for Miss

British Dictionary definitions for miss (4 of 4)

Other Idioms and Phrases with miss