Meanings
prepositional phrase
- idiomaticHaving nothing to say; not knowing what to say; stunned to the point of being speechless.
She was at a loss for words when she saw the number of people who had come to grieve for her husband.
Synonyms: lost for words
Synonyms & antonyms
prepositional phraseHaving nothing to say; not knowing what to say; stunned to the point of being speechless.
Similar
Translations
Catalan quedar-se sense paraules
- quedar-se sense parauleshaving nothing to say
Dutch sprakeloos
- sprakelooshaving nothing to say
Finnish mennä sanattomaksi, mykistyä
- mennä sanattomaksihaving nothing to say
- mykistyähaving nothing to say
French bouche bée
- bouche béehaving nothing to say
Japanese 言葉に詰まる, 言葉に出来ない
- 言葉に詰まる (kotoba ni tsumaru)having nothing to say
- 言葉に出来ない (kotoba ni dekinai)having nothing to say
Polish brak słów
- brak słówhaving nothing to say
Spanish corchado
- corchadohaving nothing to say
Thai หมดคำจะพูด, พูดไม่ออก
- หมดคำจะพูด (mòt-kam-jà-pûut)having nothing to say
- พูดไม่ออก (pûut-mâi-ɔ̀ɔk)having nothing to say
Cite this entry
APA
at a loss for words. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/at%20a%20loss%20for%20words
MLA
“at a loss for words.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/at%20a%20loss%20for%20words. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “at a loss for words,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/at%20a%20loss%20for%20words.
Source: at a loss for words on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.