Which to use
“lock” and “lockup” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,954
- “lock” frequency rank
- #49,465
- “lockup” frequency rank
- 52419
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lock | lockup |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Something used for fastening, which can only be opened with a key or combination. | A jail cell; a period of incarceration in such a cell; a facility containing such cells. |
Letter map: lock vs lockup
Shared letters muted; letters that set lock and lockup apart highlighted. Shared run: 4.
Spelling & dictionary notes on lock vs lockup
lock and lockup are indexed as a confusable English pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “lock” sits inside “lockup”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52419, 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/. lockup is at rank #49,465, tagged as anoun.
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 52419, this pair ranks #157,212 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of lock vs lockup
Shared letters: cklo. Private to "lock": -. Private to "lockup": pu.
"lock" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "lockup" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "lock" and "lockup" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "lock" or "lockup"?
Useful next steps
Pair "lock" vs "lockup" is on the table, pick a follow-up below.
- Full dictionary entry for "lock" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lockup" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #157,212 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lock" and "lockup" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lockup vs locum". 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 #157,212 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.