Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Not caught, perceived, or understood: Refers to something that was not successfully seen, heard, or comprehended when it was present or available.
   • Not achieved or attained: Refers to an opportunity, target, or goal that was not successfully reached or obtained.
   • Felt the absence or loss of: Refers to the emotional state of feeling the lack of someone or something that is gone.

Usage and Examples

• Adjective:
  • The subtle hint in his speech was completely missed by the audience. (The audience did not notice or understand the hint.)
  • She felt a missed opportunity when she heard about the job opening after the deadline. (She felt regret for not having the chance to apply.)
  • His missed free throw cost the team the game. (The free throw he failed to score affected the game's outcome.)
  • The missed connection at the airport caused a long delay. (The planned connection that was not made resulted in a delay.)

Advanced Usage

• "to be missed": To be felt as absent or longed for.
  • Her laughter was sorely missed in the office after she left. (People in the office felt a strong absence of her laughter.)
• "a missed call": A telephone call that reached the recipient's device but was not answered.
  • I saw your missed call and will call you back shortly.

Variants and Related Words

• Miss (verb): The base form.
  • I miss the bus every morning. (I fail to catch the bus.)
  • I miss my family. (I feel sad because my family is not with me.)
• Missing (adjective): Not present; absent or lost.
  • The missing document was found in the archive.
• Missable (adjective): Capable of being missed or overlooked.
  • The post-credits scene is easily missable if you leave the cinema early.

Synonyms

• Overlooked: Failed to be seen or noticed.
• Lost: No longer possessed or not obtained.
• Forgone: Not taken advantage of (e.g., a forgone opportunity).

Related Phrasal Verbs (from the base verb 'miss')

• Miss out (on): To fail to experience or benefit from something.
  • Don't miss out on this chance to travel.
• Miss the boat: To be too late to take advantage of an opportunity.
  • He missed the boat on investing in that company early.

Related Idioms

• A miss is as good as a mile: Falling short by a small margin is still a failure.
  • He almost won the race, but a miss is as good as a mile.
• Hit or miss: Sometimes successful and sometimes not; unpredictable.
  • The quality of the street food is hit or miss.

Adjective

1. not caught with the senses or the mind
   • words lost in the din