# locking

> English word · Noun · frequency rank #10,231

## Definitions
1. gerund of lock: the act by which something is locked.
2. The use of a lock or a mutex to restrict access to a part of the code to at most one process.

## Etymology
From lock + -ing.

## Easily confused with
- **losing** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-losing)
- **loving** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-loving)
- **loring** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-loring)
- **looking** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-looking)
- **logging** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-logging)
- **lurking** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-lurking)
- **longing** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-longing)
- **looting** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-looting)
- **lodging** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-lodging)
- **looming** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-looming)
- **looping** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/locking-vs-looping)
- **liking** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/liking-vs-locking)
- **lacing** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lacing-vs-locking)
- **loading** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/loading-vs-locking)
- **lacking** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lacking-vs-locking)
- **linking** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/linking-vs-locking)
- **leaking** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/leaking-vs-locking)
- **licking** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/licking-vs-locking)
- **loaning** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/loaning-vs-locking)

## Common misspellings (11)
`lcoking`, `llocking`, `loccking`, `locikng`, `lockign`, `lockingg`, `lockinng`, `lockking`, `locknig`, `lokcing`, `olcking`

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