لَفِي خُسْرٍ
Surely in loss. (العصر: 2)
The preposition fī normally expresses containment or location. Here it vividly places the human being within a condition of loss, rather than merely reporting an external misfortune. The indefinite khusr leaves room for a weighty or comprehensive conception of loss as supported by context.
Two cautions matter: prepositions do not carry exactly one figurative reading in every passage, and an indefinite noun does not automatically signal magnification. The warning, emphatic assertion, and coming exception together support the verse’s strong effect.