long-lost

long-lost — adjective

1. relating to a relative, close friend, or valued object that someone has not enco

1.形容詞B2
釋義

relating to a relative, close friend, or valued object that someone has not encountered or heard from in many years — often used in stories about emotional reunions or surprising rediscoveries.

例句

After the war, Emilio finally found his long-lost brother living in a mountain village.

attributive use with a family noun

The museum happily recovered a long-lost painting that went missing in the 1940s.

collocation with a treasured object

同義詞
  • long absent

    more factual and less emotional than long-lost; used in formal or bureaucratic contexts

  • estranged

    implies deliberate separation or conflict, not merely the passage of time

  • long-missing

    more common for objects or missing persons; carries a tone of official concern

文法句型

long-lost + noun (a person or object)

用法筆記

Used only before a noun (attributive position). The noun that follows is typically a family relation (brother, sister, cousin), a close friend, or a valuable/sentimental object (painting, letter, diary). Common in news stories about family reunions, art recovery, and personal rediscoveries.

常見錯誤

❌I found my long-lost wallet under the sofa.
✅I found my long-lost wallet after searching for years.
💡long-lost implies an absence of many years, not hours or days.
❌My long-lost phone was behind the cushion.
✅My long-lost ring turned up in an old jewellery box.
💡the word suits sentimental or high-value objects better than everyday items.