lockup

noun

lock·​up ˈläk-ˌəp 

1

: jail

especially : a local jail where persons are detained prior to court hearing

2

: an act of locking : the state of being locked

Synonyms

• jail
• prison
• penitentiary

Examples of lockup in a Sentence

the firm conviction that juvenile offenders should never be held in adult lockups

Recent Examples on the Web

The treatment stems from the perception that private investments have risks such as a lack of transparency, which raises predatory concerns, as well as higher fees and long lockup periods. —Sarah Min, CNBC, 13 July 2025

CoreCivic runs four private state prisons in Tennessee and has dozens more jails, prisons, reentry centers and federal immigration lockups across the country. —Kelly Puente, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025

Whether or not Melendez or any of these men ever walk free, what was once California’s most notorious lockup is now a place that offers them the chance to change and provides the most elusive of emotions for prisoners — hope. —Anita Chabria, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2025

The ostentatious patriarch, 56, and his 52-year-old wife were released from federal lockup in the hours after the president signed off on one of his latest batches of controversial pardons. —Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 29 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1746, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for lockup

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• makeup
• markup
• pickup

Kids Definition

lockup

noun

lock·​up -ˌəp 

: prison sense 2, jail

Legal Definition

lockup

noun

lock·​up

1

: a cell or group of cells (as in a courthouse) or jail where persons are held prior to a court hearing compare house of correction, house of detention, jail, penitentiary, prison

2

: the tactic of arranging with a friendly party an option to buy a valuable portion of one's corporate assets in order to discourage a takeover by another party