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Lock up

//ˌlɒk ˈʌp// verb, slang

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To imprison or incarcerate (someone). transitive

    "In 1970, a new era of "getting tough" on young offenders really began to gather momentum with the incoming Conservative government. The number of juveniles locked up each year increased by 500% between 1965 and 1980."

  2. 2
    place in a place where something cannot be removed or someone cannot escape wordnet
  3. 3
    To put (something) away in a locked location for safekeeping; (occasionally, chiefly humorously) to sequester (a person) in a similar way. transitive

    "Please lock up all valuables in the safe before leaving."

  4. 4
    secure by locking wordnet
  5. 5
    To close (and often lock) all doors and windows (of a place) securely. intransitive
Show 12 more definitions
  1. 6
    To lock (a door, window, etc.). transitive

    "That door still needs to be locked up."

  2. 7
    To cease responding. intransitive

    "When I press this button, the program locks up."

  3. 8
    To cause (a program) to cease responding or to freeze. transitive

    "If your password contains a particular string of letters, entering it can lock up the login form."

  4. 9
    To stop moving; to seize. intransitive
  5. 10
    To stop moving; to seize.; To stop spinning due to excessive braking torque. intransitive

    "Due to the engines-out condition, the landing was conducted without the brake antiskid and normal breaking^([sic]) systems. Because the emergency brake accumulator only provides for a limited amount of brake applications, full braking was applied and retained at the second touch down, resulting in the main wheels locking up. The tires quickly abraded and deflated at a point between about 300 and 450 feet beyond the second and final touch down."

  6. 11
    To lose one's forward momentum; to freeze.
  7. 12
    To (mistakenly) cause or have one of one's wheels to lock up (stop spinning). intransitive

    "Twelve laps later, Leclerc locked up at the first chicane and clattered over the run-off area. Again, Hamilton got a run on him, and this time Leclerc defended robustly through the flat-out Curva Grande, moving very late to block Hamilton to the Ferrari's left."

  8. 13
    To invest in something long term. transitive
  9. 14
    To travel through a flight of locks on a waterway in an uphill direction. intransitive
  10. 15
    To fasten quoins securely with a mallet and a shooting-stick. obsolete
  11. 16
    To assure success in or control of (something). slang, transitive

    "He locked up the championship with that move."

  12. 17
    To enter a state of mechanical alignment. intransitive

    "You will roll the second tape for about 15 seconds until the tape "locks up" with house sync."

Etymology

lock + up

See also for "lock up"

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