• Log InLog In
  • Register
Liquid`
Team Liquid Liquipedia
EDT 03:54
CEST 09:54
KST 16:54
  • Home
  • Forum
  • Calendar
  • Streams
  • Liquipedia
  • Features
  • Store
  • EPT
  • TL+
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Smash
  • Heroes
  • Counter-Strike
  • Overwatch
  • Liquibet
  • Fantasy StarCraft
  • TLPD
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Blogs
Forum Sidebar
Events/Features
News
Featured News
Code S Season 1 - RO8 Preview6[ASL21] Ro8 Preview Pt2: Progenitors8Code S Season 1 - RO12 Group A: Rogue, Percival, Solar, Zoun13[ASL21] Ro8 Preview Pt1: Inheritors16[ASL21] Ro16 Preview Pt2: All Star10
Community News
Maestros of The Game 2 announcement and schedule !7Weekly Cups (April 27-May 4): Clem takes triple0RSL Revival: Season 5 - Qualifiers and Main Event12Code S Season 1 (2026) - RO12 Results12026 GSL Season 1 Qualifiers25
StarCraft 2
General
Code S Season 1 - RO8 Preview Behind the Blue - Team Liquid History Book Weekly Cups (April 27-May 4): Clem takes triple Blizzard Classic Cup @ BlizzCon 2026 - $100k prize pool Code S Season 1 (2026) - RO12 Results
Tourneys
Sparkling Tuna Cup - Weekly Open Tournament Sea Duckling Open (Global, Bronze-Diamond) Maestros of The Game 2 announcement and schedule ! GSL Code S Season 1 (2026) RSL Revival: Season 5 - Qualifiers and Main Event
Strategy
Custom Maps
[D]RTS in all its shapes and glory <3 [A] Nemrods 1/4 players
External Content
Mutation # 524 Death and Taxes The PondCast: SC2 News & Results Mutation # 523 Firewall Mutation # 522 Flip My Base
Brood War
General
Quality of life changes in BW that you will like ? Why there arent any 256x256 pro maps? BGH Auto Balance -> http://bghmmr.eu/ RepMastered™: replay sharing and analyzer site Tulbo's ASL S21 Ro8 Post-Review
Tourneys
[ASL21] Ro8 Day 4 [ASL21] Ro8 Day 3 Escore Tournament StarCraft Season 2 [Megathread] Daily Proleagues
Strategy
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Fighting Spirit mining rates What's the deal with APM & what's its true value Any training maps people recommend?
Other Games
General Games
Path of Exile Stormgate/Frost Giant Megathread Nintendo Switch Thread Daigo vs Menard Best of 10 OutLive 25 (RTS Game)
Dota 2
The Story of Wings Gaming
League of Legends
Heroes of the Storm
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Heroes of the Storm 2.0
Hearthstone
Deck construction bug Heroes of StarCraft mini-set
TL Mafia
Vanilla Mini Mafia Mafia Game Mode Feedback/Ideas TL Mafia Community Thread Five o'clock TL Mafia
Community
General
US Politics Mega-thread The Letting Off Steam Thread European Politico-economics QA Mega-thread UK Politics Mega-thread Canadian Politics Mega-thread
Fan Clubs
The IdrA Fan Club
Media & Entertainment
Anime Discussion Thread [Manga] One Piece [Req][Books] Good Fantasy/SciFi books
Sports
2024 - 2026 Football Thread McBoner: A hockey love story Formula 1 Discussion
World Cup 2022
Tech Support
streaming software Strange computer issues (software) [G] How to Block Livestream Ads
TL Community
The Automated Ban List
Blogs
How EEG Data Can Predict Gam…
TrAiDoS
ramps on octagon
StaticNine
Funny Nicknames
LUCKY_NOOB
Customize Sidebar...

Website Feedback

Closed Threads



Active: 1940 users

The Words Lose & Imbalance

Blogs > CharlieMurphy
Post a Reply
1 2 3 Next All
CharlieMurphy
Profile Blog Joined March 2006
United States22895 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-06-24 03:38:38
June 24 2010 02:49 GMT
#1

                                                                  Lose Vs. Loose

A lot of people are mixing up lose and loose. In particular, a lot of people are writing loose when they really mean lose. Here are the definitions of the two words:

LOSE
Lose, Loses, Losing, Loser, Lost, Loss, Losses
verb (used with object)
1.
to come to be without (something in one's possession or care), through accident, theft, etc., so that there is little or no prospect of recovery: I'm sure I've merely misplaced my hat, not lost it.
3.
to suffer the deprivation of: to lose one's job; to lose one's life.
6.
(of a clock or watch) to run slower by: The watch loses three minutes a day.
7.
to give up; forfeit the possession of: to lose a fortune at the gaming table.
8.
to get rid of: to lose one's fear of the dark; to lose weight.
11.
to have slip from sight, hearing, attention, etc.: to lose him in the crowd.
13.
to leave far behind in a pursuit, race, etc.; outstrip: She managed to lose the other runners on the final lap of the race.
22.
(of a woman) to fail to be delivered of (a live baby) because of miscarriage, complications in childbirth, etc.

verb (used without object)
23. to suffer loss: to lose on a contract.
25.
to depreciate in effectiveness or in some other essential quality: a classic that loses in translation.

—Verb phrase
27.
lose out, to suffer defeat or loss; fail to obtain something desired: He got through the preliminaries, but lost out in the finals.
—Idiom
28.
lose face. face ( def. 48 ) .


LOOSE
Loose, Looser, Loosest, Loosened, Loosely, Looseness, Loosen, Loosening

   /lus/ Show Spelled [loos] Show IPA adjective, loos·er, loos·est, adverb, verb loosed, loos·ing.

adjective
1.
free or released from fastening or attachment: a loose end.
2.
free from anything that binds or restrains; unfettered: loose cats prowling around in alleyways at night.
3.
uncombined, as a chemical element.
4.
not bound together: to wear one's hair loose.
5.
not put up in a package or other container: loose mushrooms.
6.
available for disposal; unused; unappropriated: loose funds.
7.
lacking in reticence or power of restraint: a loose tongue.
10.
sexually promiscuous or immoral; unchaste.
11.
not firm, taut, or rigid: a loose tooth; a loose rein.
15.
having few restraining factors between associated constituents and allowing ample freedom for independent action: a loose federation of city-states.
16.
not cohering: loose sand.
17.
not strict, exact, or precise: a loose interpretation of the law.

adverb
19.
in a loose manner; loosely (usually used in combination): loose-flowing.

verb (used with object)
20.
to let loose; free from bonds or restraint.
24.
to shoot; discharge; let fly: to loose missiles at the invaders.
25.
to make less tight; slacken or relax.
26.
to render less firmly fixed; lessen an attachment; loosen.

verb (used without object)
27.
to let go a hold.
30.
Obsolete . to become loose; loosen.
Idioms
31.
break loose, to free oneself; escape: The convicts broke loose.

33.
cut/let-loose,
to become free, independent, etc.
34.
hang/stay-loose, Slang . to remain relaxed and unperturbed.

36.
on the loose,
a.
free; unconfined, as, esp., an escaped convict or circus animal.
b.
behaving in an unrestrained or dissolute way: a monster on the loose.
37.
turn loose, to release or free, as from confinement: The teacher turned the children loose after the class.




Examples:


Your play style is too loose.
I will not lose these units.
Which game did you lose?


One way to remember the difference between the two words is to think that "lose has lost an 'o'".

------------------------------------------------------------

                                                      Imbalance Vs. Unbalance


IMBALANCE
im·bal·ance
   /ɪmˈbæləns/ Show Spelled[im-bal-uhns] Show IPA
Imbalance, Imbalanced, Imbalances
noun
1.
the state or condition of lacking balance, as in proportion or distribution.
2.
faulty muscular or glandular coordination.

Medically:
lack of balance : the state of being out of equilibrium or out of proportion: as
a : loss of parallel relation between the optical axes of the eyes caused by faulty action of the extrinsic muscles and often resulting in diplopia
b : absence of biological equilibrium vitamin imbalance > the ductus arteriosus fails to close, a circulatory imbalance results — E. B. Steen & Ashley Montagu >
c : a disproportion between the number of males and females in a population

1.

A lack of balance, as in distribution or functioning.
2.

Lack of equality in some aspect of binocular vision, as in strabismus.



UNBALANCE
un·bal·ance
unbalance, unbalanced, unbalancing, unbalances, unbalancable

   /ʌnˈbæləns/ Show Spelled [uhn-bal-uhns] Show IPA verb,
verb (used with object)
1.
to throw or put out of balance.
2.
to disorder or derange, as the mind.
noun
3.
unbalanced condition.
n. The condition of being unbalanced


Examples:

The game was imbalanced.
The unbalancable equipment caused problems.
We could not overcome the imbalance.


One thing to remember when deciding which word to use that unbalance is typically used as a verb (with only like 1 single use as a objective noun) and imbalance is a noun.






TAKE THIS TEST AND WIN THE INTERNET!
Place the correct words in the proper sentences. See how you score

Lose vs Loose:
My kitty ___ his ball in the gutter.
If you ___ it, the car will run better.
The ___ of hair was attributed to his male pattern baldness.
The ___ of the women in this country is somewhat disturbing.
Will you ___ the game?
The poker player was ___ .
In a hurry, I ___ threw on my shoes and ran out the door.
Greg is a sore ___ .
Goatse man is just ___ out his muscles.
We licked our wounds and counted our ___ .
When we ___ the bolt the whole thing just fell apart.
No matter if Vuvuzela wins or ___ they still blow their horns.
The ___ I felt, the more I won.
I'm ___ my mind.
The ___ slots are always in the front of the casino, but you still come home a ___.





Imbalance vs Unbalance:
The scales are ___ .
The chemical ___ caused the poor man to go crazy .
The state of the game was ___ .
The ___ rotor on the airplane caused problems.
The ___ were obvious to even the novices.
We laughed as we ___ the seesaw.
The mentally disturbed man was ___ .
We can __ the sword if we bend it.
The fantastic singer ___ the chorus.
We quit when we discovered the game was ___ with the tools that we had.
We spent the whole hour ___ the ___ teams.



***
..and then I would, ya know, check em'. (Aka SpoR)
ella_guru
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
Canada1741 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-06-24 02:51:25
June 24 2010 02:51 GMT
#2
Footlose

[image loading]

User was warned for this post
Each day gets better : )
intrigue
Profile Blog Joined November 2005
Washington, D.C9935 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-06-24 02:55:11
June 24 2010 02:54 GMT
#3
TAKE THIS TEST AND WIN THE INTERNET!
Place the correct words in the proper sentences. See how you score

Lose vs Loose:
My kitty ___ his ball in the gutter.
If you ___ it, the car will run better.
The ___ of hair was attributed to his male pattern baldness.
The ___ of the women in this country is somewhat disturbing.
Will you ___ the game?
The poker player was ___ .
In a hurry, I ___ threw on my shoes and ran out the door.
Greg is a sore ___ .
Goatse man is just ___ out his muscles.
We licked our wounds and counted our ___ .
When we ___ the bolt the whole thing just fell apart.
No matter if Vuvuzela wins or ___ they still blow their horns.
The ___ I felt the more I won.
I'm ___ my mind.
The ___ slots are always in the front of the casino, but you still come home a ___.

Imbalance vs Unbalance:
The scales are ___ .
The chemical ___ caused the poor man to go crazy .
The state of the game was ___ .
The ___ rotor on the airplane caused problems.
The ___ were obvious to even the novices.
We laughed as we ___ the seesaw.
The mentally disturbed man was ___ .
We can __ the sword if we bend it.
The fantastic singer ___ the chorus.
We quit when we discovered the game was ___ with the tools that we had.
We spent the whole hour ___ the ___ teams.

i... don't know what to say.
Moderatorsloppy little slug
JohannesH
Profile Joined September 2009
Finland1364 Posts
June 24 2010 02:55 GMT
#4
Born to loose, live to win
If you have to ask, you don't know.
DrTJEckleburg
Profile Blog Joined February 2009
United States1080 Posts
June 24 2010 02:58 GMT
#5
I don't get this, clearly I must be one of the people mixing up these words if I can't comprehend what's going on here.
Im pretty good at whistling with my hands, especially when Im holding a whistle.
CharlieMurphy
Profile Blog Joined March 2006
United States22895 Posts
June 24 2010 02:58 GMT
#6
On June 24 2010 11:55 JohannesH wrote:
Born to loose, live to win

fail
..and then I would, ya know, check em'. (Aka SpoR)
CharlieMurphy
Profile Blog Joined March 2006
United States22895 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-06-24 02:59:46
June 24 2010 02:59 GMT
#7
On June 24 2010 11:58 DrTJEckleburg wrote:
I don't get this, clearly I must be one of the people mixing up these words if I can't comprehend what's going on here.

take the test and we'll correct it for you
..and then I would, ya know, check em'. (Aka SpoR)
mOnion
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
United States5657 Posts
June 24 2010 03:03 GMT
#8
there's no way people mess this up often enough to justify this
besides the relevance to this forum in particular is lose at best
☆★☆ 7486!!! Join the Ban mOnion Anti-Trolling Initiative! - Caller | "on a scale of machine to 10, how bad is that Zerg?" - LZgamer | you are the new tl.net bonjwa monion, congrats - Rekrul | "Cheeseburgers dynamite lilacs" - Chill
Kenpachi
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
United States9908 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-06-24 03:06:26
June 24 2010 03:05 GMT
#9
Lose vs Loose:
My kitty ___ his ball in the gutter. found
If you ___ it, the car will run better. find
The ___ of hair was attributed to his male pattern baldness. gain
The ___ of the women in this country is somewhat disturbing. minds
Will you ___ the game? Win
The poker player was ___ . winning
In a hurry, I ___ threw on my shoes and ran out the door. Tightly
Greg is a sore ___ . Winner
Goatse man is just ___ out his muscles. what the fuck.
We licked our wounds and counted our ___ . finds
When we ___ the bolt the whole thing just fell apart. found
No matter if Vuvuzela wins or ___ they still blow their horns. wins
The ___ I felt the more I won. tight
I'm ___ my mind. winning
The ___ slots are always in the front of the casino, but you still come home a ___. winner winner

Imbalance vs Unbalance:
The scales are ___ . imbaaaaaaaaaaaaaa like reavers
The chemical ___ caused the poor man to go tdotcrazy . imba
The state of the game was ___ . imba
The ___ rotor on the airplane caused problems. imba
The ___ were obvious to even the novices.imba
We laughed as we ___ the seesaw. imba
The mentally disturbed man was ___ . very imba
We can __ the sword if we bend it. imba
The fantastic singer ___ the chorus. imba
We quit when we discovered the game was ___ with the tools that we had. imba
We spent the whole hour ___ the ___ teams. imbaing imba


did i win?
Nada's body is South Korea's greatest weapon.
mOnion
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
United States5657 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-06-24 03:21:02
June 24 2010 03:08 GMT
#10
Lose vs Loose:
My kitty _lost__ his ball in the gutter.
If you _loosen__ it, the car will run better.
The __loss_ of hair was attributed to his male pattern baldness.
The _size__ of the women in this country is somewhat disturbing.
Will you __lose_ the game?
The poker player was __out 16k_ .
In a hurry, I __loosely_ threw on my shoes and ran out the door.
Greg is a sore _loser__ .
Goatse man is just __loosening_ out his muscles.
We licked our wounds and counted our _std's__ .
When we _loosened__ the bolt the whole thing just fell apart.
No matter if Vuvuzela wins or __loses_ they still blow their horns.
The _less__ I felt the more I won.
I'm _masturbating in__ my mind.
The __loose??? (dont understand gambling)_ slots are always in the front of the casino, but you still come home a _loser__.

i'm not doing the balance one cuz i've never been gay enough to use unbalance in a sentence
☆★☆ 7486!!! Join the Ban mOnion Anti-Trolling Initiative! - Caller | "on a scale of machine to 10, how bad is that Zerg?" - LZgamer | you are the new tl.net bonjwa monion, congrats - Rekrul | "Cheeseburgers dynamite lilacs" - Chill
KwarK
Profile Blog Joined July 2006
United States43979 Posts
June 24 2010 03:13 GMT
#11
I would much rather you spent your time dealing with the epidemic of people writing "dieing". Triple vowels must be stopped.
ModeratorThe angels have the phone box
mOnion
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
United States5657 Posts
June 24 2010 03:15 GMT
#12
On June 24 2010 12:13 KwarK wrote:
I would much rather you spent your time dealing with the epidemic of people writing "dieing". Triple vowels must be stopped.


don't tell Hawaii, they'll start throwing fire and shit
☆★☆ 7486!!! Join the Ban mOnion Anti-Trolling Initiative! - Caller | "on a scale of machine to 10, how bad is that Zerg?" - LZgamer | you are the new tl.net bonjwa monion, congrats - Rekrul | "Cheeseburgers dynamite lilacs" - Chill
gchan
Profile Joined October 2007
United States654 Posts
June 24 2010 03:16 GMT
#13
On June 24 2010 11:49 CharlieMurphy wrote:

The unbalanced equipment caused problems.



Usage lose. Getting a little loose with your grammar.

Unbalanced is the past tense form of the verb unbalance; the adjective form of unbalance (as a noun) is unbalanceable.

The unbalanceable equipment caused problems. That is, the equipment itself could not be balanced, and thus caused problems.
etch
Profile Blog Joined July 2009
Canada176 Posts
June 24 2010 03:16 GMT
#14
On June 24 2010 12:13 KwarK wrote:
I would much rather you spent your time dealing with the epidemic of people writing "dieing". Triple vowels must be stopped.

manoeuver?
mOnion
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
United States5657 Posts
June 24 2010 03:18 GMT
#15
On June 24 2010 12:16 gchan wrote:
Show nested quote +
On June 24 2010 11:49 CharlieMurphy wrote:

The unbalanced equipment caused problems.



Usage lose.


Usage loss.
☆★☆ 7486!!! Join the Ban mOnion Anti-Trolling Initiative! - Caller | "on a scale of machine to 10, how bad is that Zerg?" - LZgamer | you are the new tl.net bonjwa monion, congrats - Rekrul | "Cheeseburgers dynamite lilacs" - Chill
gchan
Profile Joined October 2007
United States654 Posts
June 24 2010 03:28 GMT
#16
Yeah I noticed that when I was writing it. I was trying to decide whether I wanted to be ironic and use the meme, or be grammatically correct. Irony is more humorous than correct grammar.
VeRy
Profile Joined June 2010
United States17 Posts
June 24 2010 03:35 GMT
#17
Thank you for posting this! Have you made similar threads for "your" vs. "you're" (and the much less common "yore,") or for "there" vs. "their" vs. "they're?"
Whoa! Hello! BINGO!
CharlieMurphy
Profile Blog Joined March 2006
United States22895 Posts
June 24 2010 03:39 GMT
#18
On June 24 2010 12:35 VeRy wrote:
Thank you for posting this! Have you made similar threads for "your" vs. "you're" (and the much less common "yore,") or for "there" vs. "their" vs. "they're?"

no, but other people have.
..and then I would, ya know, check em'. (Aka SpoR)
seRapH
Profile Blog Joined April 2009
United States9808 Posts
June 24 2010 03:39 GMT
#19

The scales are imba.
The chemical imba caused the poor man to go crazy .
The state of the game was imba.
The unba rotor on the airplane caused problems.
The imbas were obvious to even the novices.
We laughed as we unba the seesaw.
The mentally disturbed man was imba. (seriously, 50 speed off creep?)
We can unba the sword if we bend it.
The fantastic singer unba the chorus.
We quit when we discovered the game was imba with the tools that we had.
We spent the whole hour unba the imba teams.

im so good at this

on the other hand, i havent seen anyone mess up lose vs loose for a while. or maybe i just block it out. i see noone more often =\
boomer hands
danl9rm
Profile Blog Joined July 2009
United States3111 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-06-24 03:43:35
June 24 2010 03:40 GMT
#20
On June 24 2010 12:03 mOnion wrote:
there's no way people mess this up often enough to justify this
besides the relevance to this forum in particular is lose at best


if u think that, you must be one of them

edit: charlie has my support
"Science has so well established that the preborn baby in the womb is a living human being that most pro-choice activists have conceded the point. ..since the abortion proponents have lost the science argument, they are now advocating an existential one."
1 2 3 Next All
Please log in or register to reply.
Live Events Refresh
Next event in 2h 6m
[ Submit Event ]
Live Streams
Refresh
StarCraft: Brood War
Britney 32455
GuemChi 2596
JulyZerg 81
Shinee 64
Movie 48
zelot 42
Mind 40
yabsab 26
Shine 18
Bale 12
Dota 2
monkeys_forever251
NeuroSwarm142
League of Legends
JimRising 649
Counter-Strike
Stewie2K804
Other Games
summit1g10346
WinterStarcraft551
amsayoshi56
Organizations
Counter-Strike
PGL21199
Other Games
gamesdonequick2403
StarCraft 2
Blizzard YouTube
StarCraft: Brood War
BSLTrovo
[ Show 15 non-featured ]
StarCraft 2
• Berry_CruncH208
• Sammyuel 43
• LUISG 25
• AfreecaTV YouTube
• intothetv
• Kozan
• IndyKCrew
• LaughNgamezSOOP
• Migwel
• sooper7s
StarCraft: Brood War
• BSLYoutube
• STPLYoutube
• ZZZeroYoutube
League of Legends
• Nemesis2083
• Stunt547
Upcoming Events
Sparkling Tuna Cup
2h 6m
RSL Revival
2h 6m
Cure vs Zoun
Clem vs Lambo
WardiTV Invitational
4h 6m
ByuN vs Rogue
Solar vs Ryung
Zoun vs Percival
Cure vs SHIN
BSL
11h 6m
Dewalt vs DragOn
Aether vs Jimin
GSL
1d
Afreeca Starleague
1d 2h
Soma vs Leta
Wardi Open
1d 4h
Monday Night Weeklies
1d 8h
OSC
1d 16h
CranKy Ducklings
2 days
[ Show More ]
Afreeca Starleague
2 days
Light vs Flash
Replay Cast
3 days
Replay Cast
3 days
The PondCast
4 days
Replay Cast
4 days
RSL Revival
5 days
Korean StarCraft League
5 days
RSL Revival
6 days
BSL
6 days
Liquipedia Results

Completed

Escore Tournament S2: W6
WardiTV TLMC #16
Nations Cup 2026

Ongoing

BSL Season 22
ASL Season 21
CSL 2026 SPRING (S20)
IPSL Spring 2026
KCM Race Survival 2026 Season 2
Acropolis #4
KK 2v2 League Season 1
BSL 22 Non-Korean Championship
SCTL 2026 Spring
RSL Revival: Season 5
2026 GSL S1
PGL Astana 2026
BLAST Rivals Spring 2026
IEM Rio 2026
PGL Bucharest 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 1
BLAST Open Spring 2026
ESL Pro League S23 Finals
ESL Pro League S23 Stage 1&2

Upcoming

YSL S3
Escore Tournament S2: W7
Escore Tournament S2: W8
CSLAN 4
Kung Fu Cup 2026 Grand Finals
HSC XXIX
uThermal 2v2 2026 Main Event
Maestros of the Game 2
2026 GSL S2
BLAST Bounty Summer 2026: Closed Qualifier
Stake Ranked Episode 3
XSE Pro League 2026
IEM Cologne Major 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 2
CS Asia Championships 2026
Asian Champions League 2026
IEM Atlanta 2026
TLPD

1. ByuN
2. TY
3. Dark
4. Solar
5. Stats
6. Nerchio
7. sOs
8. soO
9. INnoVation
10. Elazer
1. Rain
2. Flash
3. EffOrt
4. Last
5. Bisu
6. Soulkey
7. Mini
8. Sharp
Sidebar Settings...

Advertising | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use | Contact Us

Original banner artwork: Jim Warren
The contents of this webpage are copyright © 2026 TLnet. All Rights Reserved.