at a loss

English

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU)

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Prepositional phrase

at a loss

1. (trade) Below the cost or price of purchase.

   We sold those old computers at a loss.

   Coordinate terms: at cost, at a profit

2. (idiomatic) Not sure; uncertain; lacking further ideas, direction, or ability.

   I have fixed the parts I understand, and the rest leaves me at a loss.

   His policies may be ineffective, but he is never at a loss for words.

   I'm at a loss how to proceed.

Synonyms

• (not sure; lacking ideas, direction, etc.): at sea, bewildered, stumped, up a tree

Translations

below the cost or price of purchase

• Catalan: a pèrdua
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 虧本／亏本 (zh) (kuīběn), 賠本／赔本 (zh) (péiběn), 蝕本／蚀本 (zh) (shíběn)

• Dutch: met verlies
• Finnish: tappiollisesti (fi), tappiolla
• French: à perte (fr)
• Hungarian: áron alul
• Icelandic: með tapi, (running at a loss) hallarekstur m, (operation at a loss) taprekstur m
• Polish: ze stratą
• Russian: с убы́тком (ru) (s ubýtkom), в убыток (v ubytok)
• Spanish: a pérdida
• Turkish: zararına (tr)

not sure; uncertain; lacking further ideas, direction, or ability

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 困惑不解 (zh) (kùnhuòbùjiě), 茫然 (zh) (mángrán), 不知所措 (zh) (bùzhīsuǒcuò)

• Czech: bezradný m
• Danish: rådvild
• Finnish: neuvoton (fi), (lacking ability) avuton (fi)
• French: perdu (fr), complètement perdu
• German: ratlos (de), auf dem Schlauch stehen (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: ἄπορος (áporos)

• Hungarian: tanácstalan (hu), fogalma sincs
• Icelandic: ráðþrota m, ráðvilltur m, ráðalaus m, (at a loss for words) vefjast tunga um tönn, (be at a loss) fallast hendur, (completely at a loss) eins og álfur út úr hól, (be at a loss) koma af fjöllum, (be at a loss for words) verða orðfall, (be at a loss for an answer) verða svarafátt, (he was at a loss) það komu vöflur á hann
• Japanese: 途方に暮れる (ja) (トホウ-に-くれる tohō-ni-kureru)
• Maori: whakamāpuna, pākira, pōkīkī, tāhurihuri, rōrī, pōkaikaha
• Norwegian: rådvill, på bærtur (to be in the woods)

  Bokmål: rådløs

  Nynorsk: rådlaus

• Polish: w rozterce
• Portuguese: perdido (pt), desorientado (pt)
• Russian: в замеша́тельстве (ru) (v zamešátelʹstve), расте́рянный (ru) (rastérjannyj), в недоуме́нии (ru) (v nedouménii), в расте́рянности (ru) (v rastérjannosti), в затрудне́нии (ru) (v zatrudnénii)
• Spanish: please add this translation if you can

See also

• lost for words

Anagrams

• Lasotas, Talossa