lock away

phrasal verb

locked away; locking away; locks away

: to put (something) in a locked container, place, etc.

The jewelry was locked away in a cabinet.

: to put (someone) in a locked place (such as a prison) for a long period of time

lock away a criminal

The state locked their sister away in a psychiatric hospital.

: to keep (oneself) alone in a room or place for a long period of time

He locked himself away in his room while he studied.

He was locked away in his room while he studied.

Examples of lock away in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web But just as Kristen is about to leave in a huff, Boggs adds that Leland also is a public security threat and needs to be locked away in a facility for life. —

Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 8 Aug. 2024 The only items locked away are premium wines, including bottles of Veuve Clicquot and Dom Pérignon. —

Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton, The Denver Post, 6 Sep. 2024 Yet experts estimate the state likely has hundreds of billions of dollars in trust assets locked away in nondescript office buildings or trust companies, offering little to no visibility to the outside world. —

Robert Frank, CNBC, 13 Aug. 2024 Keeping trees intact ensures all that carbon stays stored and supporting careful reforestation efforts ensures additional carbon gets locked away. —

Lauren Leffer, Popular Science, 24 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for lock away

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lock away.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.