How do you talk about Loss in German?

It’s what we feel when something is missing - money, people, time, or control. In German, that’s der Verlust. This is your German word of the day, and it’s a powerful, versatile word that appears in everything from financial reports to heartbreaks.

The noun Verlust means loss, and it’s one of the 1000 most frequently used nouns in German. Whether you’re reading a news headline, going over accounting figures, or just talking about a tough day, you’ll run into this word.

It’s a masculine noun, so we say der Verlust (still confused by gender? Our light-speed video lesson makes it finally click: Watch the 5-minute video lesson on German noun genders).

Pronunciation

Verlust is pronounced approximately [fer-LUST], with the short u of "put," not the English vowel in "lust."

• Ver- is unstressed, approximately [fɛɐ̯] (a short e followed by a reduced r sound),

• lust has a short u as in “put” (not “boost”) and a crisp st at the end,

• Stress is on the second syllable: ver-LUST

It’s sharp, heavy, and serious - like the feeling it describes.

Example sentences:

Der Verlust war enorm.The loss was enormous.

Wir bedauern den Verlust sehr.We deeply regret the loss.

Nuance and usage tips

Verlust appears in emotional, practical, and technical contexts:

1. Emotional or personal loss

   • ein schmerzhafter Verlust - a painful loss

   • der Verlust eines geliebten Menschen - the loss of a loved one

2. Financial or material loss

   • Verluste machen - to incur losses

   • Gewinn und Verlust - profit and loss

3. Other abstract or physical loss

   • Datenverlust - data loss

   • Kontrollverlust - loss of control

You’ll often hear verbs like:

• einen Verlust erleiden - to suffer a loss

• einen Verlust verzeichnen - to record a loss

• einen Verlust ausgleichen - to offset or make up for a loss

How does this word come up in real conversations?