<B>lock</B> (1), noun, verb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a means of fastening (doors, boxes, windows, and similar things), consisting of a bolt and usually needing a key of special shape to open it. <BR> <I>Ex. Our front door has a lock. But what can Miss Emily want with a box ... without any locks? (Walter de la Mare).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a part of a canal or dock in which the level of the water can be changed by letting water in or out, to raise or lower ships. <DD><B> 3a. </B>the part of a gun by means of which it is fired; gunlock. <BR> <I>Ex. When the lock jammed the rifle failed to go off.</I> <DD><B> b. </B>a safety on a gun. <DD><B> 4. </B>a device to keep a wheel from turning. A lock is used when a vehicle is parked facing downhill. <BR> <I>Ex. For a car of this size the lock is excellent (London Times).</I> <DD><B> 5. </B>an airtight chamber admitting to a compartment in which there is compressed air; air lock. <DD><B> 6. </B>a kind of hold in wrestling. <BR> <I>Ex. a hammer lock.</I> <DD><B> 7. </B>the action of locking together; interlocking. <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to fasten with a lock. <BR> <I>Ex. Lock and bar the door.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to shut (something in or out or up). <BR> <I>Ex. to lock something in a closet, to lock a building up for the night. We lock up jewels in a safe. Where'er she lie, Locked up from mortal eye (Richard Crashaw).</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>to hold fast. <BR> <I>Ex. The ship was locked in ice. (Figurative.) The secret was locked in her heart.</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>to join, fit, jam, or link together. <BR> <I>Ex. The girls locked arms and walked down the street together. When the brakes locked the wheels the car skidded to a stop.</I> <DD><B> 5. </B>to make or set fast; fasten. <DD><B> 6. </B>to fasten (a wheel) to keep from turning. <DD><B> 7. </B>(Printing.) to fasten (type or blocks in a chase) for printing or plating. <DD><B> 8a. </B>to embrace closely. <BR> <I>Ex. Lock'd in each other's arms we stood (Matthew Arnold).</I> <DD><B> b. </B>to grapple in combat. <BR> <I>Ex. one glance ... showed me Hands and his companion locked together in deadly wrestle (Robert Louis Stevenson).</I> <DD><B> 9. </B>to move (a ship) by means of a lock. <DD><B> 10. </B>to furnish (a river, canal, or dam) with locks. <DD><B> 11. </B>to shut off (a portion of a river or canal) by means of a lock. <DD><B> 12. </B>to invest (capital) in something not easily convertible into money. <DD><I>v.i. </I> <B>1. </B>to be locked; be capable of being locked. <BR> <I>Ex. The door will not lock with his key.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to become fixed or set fast; become locked. <BR> <I>Ex. This gear has locked. Two cars locked together in passing.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>to go or pass by means of a lock. <DD><B> 4. </B>to provide locks for the passage of vessels. <BR><I>expr. <B>lock on,</B> <DD><B> a. </B>(of a radar) to fix upon and automatically follow a moving object. </I> <I>Ex. The radar locked on the missile and tracked it until it landed in the desert.</I> <DD><B> b. </B>to aim missiles, shells, or bombs at (a target), as by radar. <BR> <I>Ex. The 1,500-mph Nike, a target-seeking missile that "locks on" the radar image of a plane ... (John Hall Thompson).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>lock out,</B> </I>to refuse to give work to (workers) until they accept the employer's terms. <BR> <I>Ex. Large funds are subscribed, out of which labourers on strike or locked out are supported (James E. Rogers).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>lock,</B> <B>stock,</B> <B>and barrel,</B> </I>(Informal.) completely; entirely. <BR> <I>Ex. It is thus the only foreign city in the world run lock, stock, and barrel by the U.S. Navy (Time).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>lock the wheels</B> (or <B>brakes</B>). </I>See under <B>wheel.</B> <BR><I>expr. <B>under lock and key,</B> </I>locked up; in a place that is locked. <BR> <I>Ex. Under lock and key, in the ... store room (H. Stuart).</I> adj. <B>lockable.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="lock">
<B>lock</B> (2), noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a curl of hair of the head. <BR> <I>Ex. Like the white lock of Whistler (G. K. Chesterton).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a small portion of hair, wool, flax, or cotton. <BR><I>expr. <B>locks,</B> </I>the hair of the head. </DL>
<A NAME="lock">
<B>-lock,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (combining form.) complete stoppage; paralysis; jam. <BR> <I>Ex. Crowds brimmed the streets conquering gridlock, boatlock, a taxi strike cablock (New York Times).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lockage">
<B>lockage, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the construction, use, or operation of locks in canals or streams. <DD><B> 2. </B>the passing of ships through a lock or series of locks. <DD><B> 3a. </B>the walls, gates, or other parts, forming a lock or locks. <DD><B> b. </B>a system of locks or the locks in such a system. <DD><B> 4. </B>the amount of elevation and descent effected by a lock or locks. <DD><B> 5. </B>a toll paid for passage through a lock or locks. </DL>
<A NAME="lockaway">
<B>lock-away, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (British.) a long-term security. <BR> <I>Ex. At this level and in view of the prospects the shares should be regarded as a widows' and orphans' lock-away rather than a performance stock (London Times).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lockbox">
<B>lock-box, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a box with a lock. <DD><B> 2. </B>a coin-operated public locker. </DL>
<A NAME="lockean">
<B>Lockean, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> of, having to do with, or characteristic of the English philosopher John Locke. <BR> <I>Ex. He dismisses ... Lockean representative government as irrelevant to the problems of large-scale industrial societies (New Yorker).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lockeanism">
<B>Lockeanism, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the philosophical doctrines of John Locke (1632-1704) or his followers. </DL>
<A NAME="lockedin">
<B>locked-in, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>closed to outside influence or control; exclusive. <BR> <I>Ex. a locked-in commercial enterprise.</I> <DD><B> 2a. </B>(of an investor) holding on to securities, especially to avoid payment of high capital gains taxes. <DD><B> b. </B>(of securities) not sold or traded on the market; static. </DL>
<A NAME="locker">
<B>locker, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a chest, drawer, small closet, cupboard, or other compartment that can be locked. Ships have lockers for storing equipment and supplies. <DD><B> 2. </B>a refrigerated compartment for storing frozen foods. <DD><B> 3. </B>a person or thing that locks. </DL>
<A NAME="lockerroom">
<B>locker room,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a room with lockers near a gymnasium or athletic field, or in a clubhouse, bowling alley or skating rink, for dressing and for storing sports equipment. <BR> <I>Ex. After football practice he was always down in the locker room (New Yorker).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a room with lockers for storage. <BR> <I>Ex. the locker room of a frozen-food plant.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="locket">
<B>locket, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a small, ornamental case of gold or silver, for holding a picture of someone or a lock of hair. It is usually worn around the neck on a chain. A locket often has a hinged cover. </DL>
<A NAME="lockgate">
<B>lockgate, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> one of the gates of a canal lock. </DL>
<A NAME="lockin">
<B>lock-in, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a protest demonstration in which a group locks itself within a building, office, or other enclosed area. <BR> <I>Ex. They decided last week to stage a lock-in to draw attention to their case (Sunday Times).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lockjaw">
<B>lockjaw, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a form of tetanus in which the jaws become firmly closed. <DD><B> 2. </B><B>=tetanus.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="lockkeeper">
<B>lockkeeper, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the supervisor of a lock. </DL>
<A NAME="lockmaster">
<B>lockmaster, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a person who operates a lock. <BR> <I>Ex. The lockmaster in his control station closes the lower gates by pressing a button (Alexander Laing).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="locknut">
<B>locknut, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a nut that can be screwed down on another to keep it securely in place. <DD><B> 2. </B>a nut that locks in place when tightly screwed. </DL>
<A NAME="lockon">
<B>lock-on, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the action of locking on to an object by radar. </DL>
<A NAME="lockout">
<B>lockout, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a refusal of an employer to give work to employees until they accept his terms; shut-out. <BR> <I>Ex. The lockout was ordered yesterday evening, following a clash between a section of workers and some representatives of the management (Times of India).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>an underwater compartment in which the air pressure is sufficient to prevent water from entering through the compartment's open port. <BR> <I>Ex. Some of the modifications which are being considered are as follows: a lockout which will allow entry and exit of divers at work sites down to 1000 feet (New Scientist).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lockram">
<B>lockram, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a linen fabric or cloth formerly made in England for garments and household use. </DL>
<A NAME="locks">
<B>locks, </B>noun pl.<DL COMPACT><DD> See under <B>lock</B> (2). </DL>
<A NAME="locksmith">
<B>locksmith, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a person who makes or repairs locks and keys. </DL>
<A NAME="locksmithery">
<B>locksmithery, </B>noun, pl. <B>-eries.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the work or craft of a locksmith. </DL>
<A NAME="locksmithing">
<B>locksmithing, </B>noun. =locksmithery.</DL>
<A NAME="lockstep">
<B>lockstep, </B>noun, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a way of marching in step very close together, with the legs of each person nearly touching those of the person in front and back. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Figurative.) a rigid pattern or arrangement. <BR> <I>Ex. When Manning came to Stanford in 1964, he was determined to break the traditional lockstep of three-year law school curriculums (Time).</I> <DD><I>adj. </I> rigid; unbending. <BR> <I>Ex. Mrs. Handy's lockstep methods (copy the great novelists, read the "Masters of the Far East," stay away from girls) produced a handful of published novels (New Yorker).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lockstitch">
<B>lock stitch,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a sewing-machine stitch in which two threads are fastened together at short intervals. </DL>
<A NAME="lockup">
<B>lockup, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1a. </B>a house or room for the temporary detention of persons under arrest. <DD><B> b. </B><B>=jail.</B> <DD><B> 2. </B>the act of locking up. <DD><B> 3. </B>the state of being locked up. </DL>
<A NAME="lockwasher">
<B>lock washer,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> any one of various types of steel washers placed under a nut to keep it from working loose. </DL>
