lost

/lawst, lost/, adj.

1. no longer possessed or retained: lost friends.

2. no longer to be found: lost articles.

3. having gone astray or missed the way; bewildered as to place, direction, etc.: lost children.

4. not used to good purpose, as opportunities, time, or labor; wasted: a lost advantage.

5. being something that someone has failed to win: a lost prize.

6. ending in or attended with defeat: a lost battle.

7. destroyed or ruined: lost ships.

8. preoccupied; rapt: He seems lost in thought.

9. distracted; distraught; desperate; hopeless: the lost look of a man trapped and afraid.

10. get lost, Slang.

a. to absent oneself: I think I'll get lost before an argument starts.

b. to stop being a nuisance: If they call again, tell them to get lost.

11. lost to,

a. no longer belonging to.

b. no longer possible or open to: The opportunity was lost to him.

c. insensible to: lost to all sense of duty.

v.t., v.i.

12. pt. and pp. of lose.

Syn. 1. forfeited, gone, missing. 3. confused, perplexed. 4. squandered.

Ant. 1. found.

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▪ American television program

      American television drama airing on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) network. Since its 2004 debut, the show has been one of ABC's most successful series, enjoying top-20 Nielsen rankings and winning a number of Emmy Awards, including best drama series (2005).

      Lost is a fast-paced, suspenseful, and surreal series about a group of people who survive when their commercial passenger jet, Oceanic Airlines Flight 815, crashes on a remote island in the tropical Pacific. As the survivors work together in an attempt to stay alive, they discover many mysteries about the island. It is a place of supernatural wonders and grave perils. Among the oddities and menaces they discover are a mysterious hatch, the occasional appearance of ominous black smoke, a population referred to as “the Others,” and the bunkers of scientific researchers who appear to have recently occupied the island. The many threats force the survivors to cooperate and rely upon each other, but conflicts arise as they turn against one another or disagree on the proper course of action. The show features a large ensemble cast: in season one, of the 72 marooned passengers (71 people and 1 dog), 14 actors had regular speaking roles.

      Lost features a convoluted plot in which nothing is as it seems, and new story lines can erupt without warning. Each mystery typically weaves into a larger one that perpetuates the plot and implies that there may be one underlying explanation for all of the island's vexing curiosities. The show regularly employs flashbacks and flash-forwards that reveal telling or foreboding aspects of a character. Each episode ends in a signature cliff-hanger.

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