失

Tap the pinyin to hear it

to lose; to miss; to fail

Sound it out + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

Ideographic compound (会意字)

Something 丿 falling from a hand 夫

Components 丿夫

lose · Heisig RSH #729

夫 husband + a drop of

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
不失时机	bù shī shí jī	to seize the opportune moment; to lose no time
无主失物	wú zhǔ shī wù	unclaimed lost property
失面子	shī miàn zi	to lose face; to be humiliated
机不可失	jī bù kě shī	No time to lose! (idiom)
有得有失	yǒu dé yǒu shī	you win some, you lose some (idiom); gains and losses; trade-off
失体面	shī tǐ miàn	to lose face
原发性进行性失语	yuán fā xìng jìn xíng xìng shī yǔ	primary progressive aphasia (PPA), speech disorder (sometimes related to dementia)
不失	bù shī	still possesses; yet retains (some positive attribute that contrasts with another of its a…
百无一失	bǎi wú yī shī	no danger of anything going wrong; no risk at all
进行性失语	jìn xíng xìng shī yǔ	progressive aphasia; gradual loss of speech
失学	shī xué	unable to go to school; an interruption to one's education
失地	shī dì	to lose territory; lost territory
言多语失	yán duō yǔ shī	see 言多必失[yan2 duo1 bi4 shi1]
自失	zì shī	at a loss
万无一失	wàn wú yī shī	surefire; absolutely safe (idiom)
有失	yǒu shī	to cause a loss of (decorum, dignity etc) (used in fixed expressions)
不失为	bù shī wéi	can be regarded as; qualifies as (something positive)
失手	shī shǒu	a slip; miscalculation; unwise move; accidentally; by mistake; to lose control; to be defe…
失身分	shī shēn fèn	demeaning
失利	shī lì	to lose; to suffer defeat

These characters use 失 as their sound component — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
失 sound part	shī	to lose; to make a mistake, to neglect
铁	tiě	iron; strong, solid, firm
迭	dié	repeatedly, frequently
秩	zhì	order; ordered
帙	zhì	book jacket; satchel, bag
轶	yì	to surpass, to overtake, to excel
泆	yì	to overflow; licentious, libertine, dissipated
瓞	dié	young melon
袟	zhì	bag, satchel; book cover
鉄	tiě	iron; strong, solid, firm