Which to use
“lock” is a noun and “locked” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,954
- “lock” frequency rank
- #3,438
- “locked” frequency rank
- 6392
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lock | locked |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Something used for fastening, which can only be opened with a key or combination. | simple past and past participle of lock |
Where the eye mixes lock and locked
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses lock with locked
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: lock is /lɒk/ while locked is /lɒkt/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “lock” sits inside “locked”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6392, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lock is recorded at frequency rank #2,954, classified as anoun, pronounced /lɒk/. locked is at rank #3,438, tagged as averb, pronounced /lɒkt/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 6392, this pair ranks #511,611 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of lock vs locked
Shared letters: cklo. Private to "lock": -. Private to "locked": de.
"lock" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "locked" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "lock" and "locked" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "lock" vs "locked" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "lock" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "locked" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #511,611 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lock" and "locked" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "locked vs lockup". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #511,611 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.