Translation guide
The English phrasal verb "miss out" generally means to fail to participate in or enjoy an opportunity, event, or experience. It can also mean to accidentally omit something. This guide covers both core meanings with natural Japanese equivalents.
Expressing that someone did not get to do or enjoy something good, often with a sense of regret or warning.
Attach to the stem of a verb to mean 'miss the chance to do' or 'fail to do'. Common and natural for missed opportunities.
映画を見損ねた。
I missed out on seeing the movie.
セールで買い損ねた。
I missed out on buying it during the sale.
Describing a situation where something or someone is unintentionally not included.
Means 'to omit' or 'leave out'. Often used when skipping an item in a list or a step in a process.
The English 'miss out' cannot be directly translated word-for-word into Japanese. Avoid literal combinations like 逃す外 (のがすそと) or ミスアウト. Use the verb phrases above depending on context.
Both mean 'miss a chance', but ～損ねる focuses on personal failure to do something, while ～逃す emphasizes letting an opportunity slip away. ～損ねる attaches to verbs, ～逃す often takes nouns like チャンス.
買い損ねた vs チャンスを逃した
missed buying it vs missed the chance
Literally 'let escape', used for missing a chance or opportunity. Often used with nouns like チャンス (chance) or 機会 (opportunity).
チャンスを逃した。
I missed out on the chance.
絶好の機会を逃してしまった。
I ended up missing out on a perfect opportunity.
Means 'ended up not doing' and implies a missed experience. Often carries a nuance of regret.
結局、花火を見ずに終わった。
In the end, I missed out on seeing the fireworks.
Literally 'miss the ride', used metaphorically for missing a trend or movement. Common in business or tech contexts.
AIブームに乗り遅れた。
We missed out on the AI boom.
リストから彼の名前を抜かしてしまった。
I accidentally missed out his name from the list.
Literally 'drop', but can mean 'omit' or 'leave out' in contexts like typing or printing.
印刷したら一行落ちていた。
When I printed it, one line was missed out.
Means 'forget to put in', used when you accidentally omit something from a container, document, etc.
封筒に切手を入れ忘れた。
I missed out putting a stamp on the envelope.