lock

lock · noun, verb¹

1. Proto-Indo-European*lewg-
2. Proto-Germanic*luką
3. Proto-West Germanic*lok
4. Old Englishloc
5. Middle Englishlok
6. English todaylock

From Middle English lok, from Old English loc, from Proto-West Germanic *lok, from Proto-Germanic *luką from Proto-Indo-European *lewg- (“to bend; turn”). Cognate with Cimbrian loch, lòch (“hole”), Dutch lok (“hole”), German Loch (“hole”), German Low German Lock (“hole”), Luxembourgish Lach (“hole”), Vilamovian łöch (“hole”), Yiddish לאָך (lokh, “hole”), Danish låg (“lid, cover”), Norwegian Bokmål lokk (“lid, cover”), Norwegian Nynorsk lok, lokk (“lid, cover”). more detail The verb is from Middle English locken, lokken, louken, from Old English lūcan, Proto-West Germanic *lūkan, from Proto-Germanic *lūkaną. Cognate with Dutch luiken (“to close, to shut”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål lukke (“to close, to shut”), Faroese lúka (“to end, to finish”), Icelandic ljúka (“to close, to shut”), Norwegian Nynorsk lukka (“to close, to shut”). Related to luxe via Latin.

lock · noun²

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*lewg-“to bend”
2. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*lugnó-
3. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*lukkaz
4. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*lokk
5. Old English · inherited fromlocc“hair of the head, hair, lock of hair, curl, ringlet”
6. Middle English · inherited fromlok
7. English todaylock

From Middle English lok, lokke, from Old English locc (“hair of the head, hair, lock of hair, curl, ringlet”), from Proto-West Germanic *lokk, from Proto-Germanic *lukkaz, from Proto-Indo-European *lugnó-, from Proto-Indo-European *lewg- (“to bend”). Cognate with Alemannic German lokha (“hair”), Dutch lok (“lock of hair, curl”), German Locke (“lock of hair, curl”), Danish lok (“lock of hair, curl”), Faroese, Icelandic lokkur (“lock of hair, curl”), Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk lokk (“lock of hair, curl”), Swedish lock (“lock of hair, curl”). It has been theorised that the word may be related to the Gothic verb *𐌻𐌿𐌺𐌰𐌽 (*lukan, “to shut”) in its ancient meaning "to curb".

lock · noun, verb³

Ellipsis of dreadlock

Lock · proper noun⁴

1. Middle English · inherited fromlocke
2. Old English · derived fromloca“enclosure”
3. Middle English · inherited fromloke
4. English todayLock

* As an English, German and Dutch surname, from the noun lock. * Also as an English surname, from Middle English loke, itself from Old English loca (“enclosure”) or *Loca (“Loki”) (theonym of the latter). * Also as an English surname, from Middle English locke, from Old English locc (“lock of hair”). * Also as a German surname, Americanized from Loch. * As a Chinese surname, variant of Lok, itself from: ** a Cantonese form of 樂 /乐, see Le. ** a Cantonese form of 陸 /陆, 鹿 (lù), 逯 (lù), and 禄 (lù), see Lu. ** a Cantonese form of 駱 /骆 (luò), see Luo.

Words from the same roots