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Although both words can be found in dictionaries, I'm constantly forgetting which one is which.

Are there any mnemonic rules that would help me remembering them?

Giambattista
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Be Brave Be Like Ukraine
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5 Answers5

24

Lose has lost one of its o's.
Loose has an extra o, like an extra hole in a loose knot.

(Honestly, though, remembering just the first one should be enough to get you through everyday life).

waiwai933
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9

If I lose something, it has become lost not loost.

J.T. Grimes
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5

If the goose gets loose, you lose your job.

(2 o's in goose and loose. and they rhyme. once you know that, you're set.)

Nevis Rik
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4

Looose (stretch the o) is nice and large, while lose is small and easy to misplace?

(nice and large, I guess like a pair of misfitting pants or something, I don't know)

Ryan Leonard
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2

You have a regular spelling in loose, adjective, and a special spelling in to lose, verb. I would say the drop of one o is an optical help to distinguish the two words.

As a mnemonic help you can arrange alphabetically:

A adjective loose with Ŕegular spelling

V verb lose with Śpecial spelling.

Try if this helps. If not, you have to invent something better. I did such things sometimes with my pupils to improve their creativeness to invent memory aids on their own.

rogermue
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