Miss Definition

mĭs
missed, misses, missing
verb
missed, misses, missing
To fail to hit something aimed at; go wide of the mark.
Webster's New World
To fail to meet, reach, attain, catch, accomplish, see, hear, perceive, understand, etc.
Webster's New World
To be too late for or fail to meet (a train, for example).
American Heritage
To fail to perceive, experience, or understand.
I missed my favorite TV show last night. You completely missed the point of the film.
American Heritage
To fail to accomplish or achieve.
Just missed setting a new record.
American Heritage
noun
misses
A failure to hit, meet, obtain, see, etc.
Webster's New World
A failure to be successful.
The new movie was a miss.
American Heritage
The misfiring of an engine.
American Heritage
A title used in speaking to or of an unmarried woman or a girl and used with just the first name.
Miss Jane.
Webster's New World
A title used in speaking to or of an unmarried woman or a girl and placed before the name.
Miss Smith, Miss Emily Smith, the Misses Smith.
Webster's New World
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
abbreviation
Mississippi.
Webster's New World
idiom
miss fire
  • To fail to discharge. Used of a firearm.
  • To fail to achieve the anticipated result.
American Heritage
miss out on
  • To lose a chance for:

    missed out on the promotion.

American Heritage
miss the boat
  • To fail to avail oneself of an opportunity.
  • To fail to understand.
American Heritage
a miss is as good as a mile
  • missing by a narrow margin has the same practical effect as missing by a wide one
Webster's New World
miss one's guess
  • to fail to guess or predict accurately
Webster's New World

Other Word Forms of Miss

Noun

Singular:
miss
Plural:
misses

Idioms, Phrasal Verbs Related to Miss

Origin of Miss

  • From Middle English missen, from Old English missan (“to miss, escape the notice of a person"), Proto-Germanic *missijanÄ… (“to miss, go wrong, fail"), from Proto-Indo-European *meit- (“to change, exchange, trade"). Cognate with North Frisian missen (“to miss"), Dutch missen (“to miss"), German vermissen (“to do without, miss"), Swedish missa (“to miss"), Icelandic missa (“to lose").

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English missen from Old English missan mei-1 in Indo-European roots

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • Short for mistress

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • From mistress.

    From Wiktionary

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