These words refer to accidental losses. Mislay suggests the absent-minded or disorganized act of putting something down where it doesn’t belong, without remembering later exactly where it is: afraid that he had mislaid the car keys; searching frantically for the mislaid title to the house. The word suggests that the mislaid item is of relatively small size and somewhat difficult to keep track of. Misplace , on the other hand, would not be so restricted: misplaced a whole truckload of wheat in one of the marshalling yards. The word can merely suggest bad planning rather than temporary loss: finding that the table had been misplaced , and was too near the open fire. The word can suggest an action that may be intentional or unwise: deliberately misplacing the book on a shelf where no one could find it; misplaced admiration for another woman’s husband.

Lose is the most general of the words, suggesting any accidental failure to keep hold of something one possesses: losing the change through a hole in his pocket. Whereas mislay and misplace suggest that the desired item may eventually be found, lose may suggest a permanent lack: he hadn’t lost the letter; he had simply misplaced it. Lost in its generality has a much wider range of use than these other words: losing his way; losing the account to his competitor; trying to lose the man in the crowd.

Miss is much more specific in this context. It points to the moment when one becomes conscious of having lost something: first missing his wallet when he offered to pay for the next round of drinks.