Forlese

Pronunciation

• IPA: /fɔːˈliːz/

Alternative forms

• forleese, forlore

Origin

From Middle English forlesen, from Old English forlēosan ("to lose, abandon, let go, destroy, ruin"), equivalent to - + lese. Cognate with Scots forlore ("to lose"), Dutch verliezen ("to lose"), German verlieren ("to lose"), Swedish förlisa ("to be lost"), Swedish förlora ("to lose").

Full definition of forlese

Verb

1. (transitive, obsolete) To lose entirely or completely.
2. (transitive, obsolete) To destroy, kill.
3. (transitive, obsolete) To abandon, forsake.
• 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, III.4:Soone as they bene arriv'd upon the brim
  Of the Rich Strond, their charets they forlore ....
4. (transitive, obsolete) To bereave; deprive.

Usage notes

Survives in the derived participle adjective forlorn.