lost on (one)

lost on (one)

Unappreciated or not understood, as of an idea. That whole lecture was lost on me. What was he even talking about? The joke was lost on the audience, unfortunately. I'll have to rewrite it to be less subtle. The human cost necessary to make these first-world comforts is a hard truth that is lost on most consumers.See also: lost, on

*lost on someone

Fig. wasted on someone; not valued or appreciated by someone. (*Typically: be ~; get ~.) My jokes are lost on him. He is too literal. The humor of the situation was lost on Mary. She was too upset to see it.See also: lost, on

lost on one

Have no effect or influence on one, as in Ned's attempts at humor were lost on Meg, or David's kindness was not lost on his aunt. This expression uses lost in the sense of "wasted." [c. 1600] Also see you've lost me. See also: lost, on, one