Meaning & use
long lost friend
Last updated
Meaning
phrasecountable
A friend you have not seen or been in contact with for a very long time.
Grammar: Countable: a long-lost friend, two long-lost friends. Often used with 'find' or 'meet'.
Patterns
- a long-lost friend
- find a long-lost friend
- reunite with a long-lost friend
At the reunion, I ran into a long-lost friend from primary school.
She searched social media and finally found her long-lost friend from Canada.
It felt wonderful to hug a long-lost friend after twenty years.
Word forms
| plural | long-lost friends |
|---|
Common combinations
- a long-lost friend from school
- He met a long-lost friend from school at the airport.
- find a long-lost friend
- She used the internet to find a long-lost friend.
- reunite with a long-lost friend
- He reunited with a long-lost friend at the party.
- long-lost friend of mine
- Tom is a long-lost friend of mine from university.
Synonyms and how they differ
- old friend
- An old friend is someone you have known for a long time and may still see often; a long-lost friend is someone you have not seen for a very long time.
- former friend
- A former friend is someone you are no longer friends with; a long-lost friend is still a friend, just not seen for a long time.
Opposites
Commonly confused: long lost friend or long lost?
long lost friend vs long lost
'Long lost' can describe anything missing for a long time, such as a long-lost treasure. Adding 'friend' makes it specifically about a person.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'long-lost friend' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A long-lost friend is someone you have not seen for a very long time, so a ten-year gap fits. The other options describe a daily friend, an ex-friend, or a brand-new friend, which contradict the phrase.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “long lost friend”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.