# lock up

> English word · Verb · IPA /ˌlɒk ˈʌp/

## Definitions
1. To imprison or incarcerate (someone).
2. To put (something) away in a locked location for safekeeping; (occasionally, chiefly humorously) to sequester (a person) in a similar way.
3. To close (and often lock) all doors and windows (of a place) securely.
4. To lock (a door, window, etc.).
5. To cease responding.
6. To cause (a program) to cease responding or to freeze.
7. To stop moving; to seize.
8. To stop moving; to seize.
9. To lose one's forward momentum; to freeze.
10. To (mistakenly) cause or have one of one's wheels to lock up (stop spinning).
11. To invest in something long term.
12. To travel through a flight of locks on a waterway in an uphill direction.
13. To fasten quoins securely with a mallet and a shooting-stick.
14. To assure success in or control of (something).
15. To enter a state of mechanical alignment.

## Etymology
lock + up

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/lock-up