LOCKED (UP) Synonyms: 50 Similar and Opposite Words

locked (up)

verb

past tense of lock (up)

as in imprisoned

to put in or as if in prison if they catch you, they're going to lock you up and throw away the key!

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for locked (up)

Verb

Her lengthy arrest record grew over the following years, and in 1981 she was imprisoned after robbing a convenience store.

— Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 17 Sep. 2026
After crash landing on the dark world directly onto the homing beacon, EO and his crazy crew are apprehended by a gang of warrior henchmen and hauled into the throne room to face the wicked alien ruler who is imprisoned in anger and hate.

— Jeff Spry, Space.com, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of imprisoned

Verb

The Belarusian opposition has welcomed Coale's efforts as an important humanitarian mission, but emphasized that Lukashenko's government has jailed more political prisoners.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Sep. 2026
Jacobs was jailed but released the following day after the Brown County District Attorney’s Office found insufficient evidence to pursue criminal charges.

— Zach Powell, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of jailed

Verb

Peyton Stewart was a 21-year-old international business major who grew up with her sister in Westwood, New Jersey, studied abroad in London and interned at TikTok.

— Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2026
Johnson hired a young Ossoff as a staffer on the recommendation of the late Georgia Congressman John Lewis, the civil rights icon Ossoff interned for and considered a mentor.

— Sam Gringlas, NPR, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of interned

Verb

The term, once confined to technical science papers, has gripped Silicon Valley, steered trillions of dollars in investment and fanned fears of human displacement, or worse.

— George Musser, Scientific American, 17 Sep. 2026
The two factors, as well as him being confined within the Disney walls for the past two years, led to Schrier’s decision to take on a new chapter as a producer.

— Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of confined

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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locked out

locked (up)

locker

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“Locked (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/locked%20%28up%29. Accessed 19 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of locked (up)

verb

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