lose touch

IPA/lˈuːz tˈʌtʃ/
IPA/lˈuːz tˈʌtʃ/

lose touch — idiom

1. to stop communicating with someone you used to know, so that you no longer know

1.慣用語B1
釋義

to stop communicating with someone you used to know, so that you no longer know what is happening in that person's life or where they are.

例句

After Vivek moved to Japan, he lost touch with most of his college friends.

lose touch with + person/group

Mira and her childhood best friend lost touch after high school, but reconnected on social media.

reciprocal: [Person A] and [Person B] lost touch

同義詞
  • drift apart

    emphasises a gradual, natural separation rather than a sudden stop

  • grow apart

    suggests that changing interests or life paths cause the loss

  • lose contact

    very similar; slightly more formal and can imply a complete absence of communication

反義詞

文法句型

lose touch + with + someone

用法筆記

This sense is almost always unintentional or the natural result of time passing. Deliberately stopping contact is usually expressed as 'cut off contact' or 'stop talking to.' The preposition that follows is always 'with' (not 'of' or 'to').

常見錯誤

❌I lost touch of him after university.
✅I lost touch with him after university.
💡The correct preposition is 'with', not 'of'.
❌I want to lose touch with you.
✅I want to stay in touch with you.
💡'lose touch' describes an unintended or natural break, not a deliberate choice.

2. to no longer keep up with new developments, trends, or changes in a particular a

2.慣用語B2
釋義

to no longer keep up with new developments, trends, or changes in a particular area; to stop understanding how a group of people thinks or feels.

例句

After retiring from teaching, Tomás lost touch with the latest classroom methods and technology.

lose touch with + a field/area of knowledge

Soraya had lived abroad so long that she lost touch with how her hometown felt about politics.

lose touch with how + clause: losing awareness of opinions

同義詞
  • fall behind

    more general; can apply to skills, technology, or knowledge gaps

  • be out of touch

    describes the resulting state rather than the process of losing awareness

反義詞

文法句型

lose touch + with + topic/field/group

用法筆記

Often used with a topic, field, or social group as the object of 'with'. Unlike sense 1, the relationship here is between a person and a subject area or a group's mentality, not necessarily between two individuals.

常見錯誤

❌The politician has lost touch of the voters.
✅The politician has lost touch with the voters.
💡Again, use 'with', not 'of'.
❌I lost touch to learn new skills.
✅I am out of touch with new skills because I stopped learning them.
💡'lose touch' is not followed by an infinitive of purpose; use 'out of touch' for a state.