"lock on" meaning in English

See lock on in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Verb

IPA: /ˌlɒk ˈɒn/ [UK], /ˌlɑk ˈɑn/ [US] Forms: locks on [present, singular, third-person], locking on [participle, present], locked on [participle, past], locked on [past]
Head templates: {{en-verb|*}} lock on (third-person singular simple present locks on, present participle locking on, simple past and past participle locked on)
  1. (intransitive) To begin tracking a target via an automated system. Tags: intransitive Coordinate_terms: lock in, ;, home in Translations (to begin tracking a target via an automated system): śledzić [imperfective] (Polish), fijarse (Spanish)
    Sense id: en-lock_on-en-verb-bYSZBL6N Disambiguation of 'to begin tracking a target via an automated system': 90 3 7
  2. (transitive) To cause a missile to track (a target). Tags: transitive Translations (to cause a missile to track): celować [imperfective] (Polish), fijar (Spanish), encauzar (Spanish)
    Sense id: en-lock_on-en-verb-Qh5xickF Disambiguation of 'to cause a missile to track': 2 98 0
  3. (intransitive) To engage in a lock-on protest. Tags: intransitive
    Sense id: en-lock_on-en-verb-DP6JOjkA Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, English phrasal verbs formed with "on", Entries with translation boxes, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Terms with Polish translations, Terms with Spanish translations Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 10 5 85 Disambiguation of English phrasal verbs formed with "on": 12 10 78 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 7 7 86 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 7 6 87 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 6 6 89 Disambiguation of Terms with Polish translations: 15 12 74 Disambiguation of Terms with Spanish translations: 13 9 78

Inflected forms

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "locks on",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "locking on",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "locked on",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "locked on",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "*"
      },
      "expansion": "lock on (third-person singular simple present locks on, present participle locking on, simple past and past participle locked on)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [],
      "coordinate_terms": [
        {
          "word": "lock in"
        },
        {
          "word": ";"
        },
        {
          "word": "home in"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              55,
              63
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "1997, Phil Husbands, Inman Harvey, Fourth European Conference on Artificial Life, page 356:",
          "text": "When the triangle came into view, the robot would then 'lock on' and move directly towards it, adjusting its course as it went.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              30,
              37
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2013, Jim Keys, Fighting Brits, page 255:",
          "text": "Glasgow's Sea Darts failed to lock on to the attackers, but the Sea Wolfs from Brilliant shot down one Skyhawk while another attacker crashed while trying to evade the missiles.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To begin tracking a target via an automated system."
      ],
      "id": "en-lock_on-en-verb-bYSZBL6N",
      "links": [
        [
          "track",
          "track"
        ],
        [
          "target",
          "target"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(intransitive) To begin tracking a target via an automated system."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "90 3 7",
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "lang_code": "pl",
          "sense": "to begin tracking a target via an automated system",
          "tags": [
            "imperfective"
          ],
          "word": "śledzić"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "90 3 7",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "lang_code": "es",
          "sense": "to begin tracking a target via an automated system",
          "word": "fijarse"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [],
      "glosses": [
        "To cause a missile to track (a target)."
      ],
      "id": "en-lock_on-en-verb-Qh5xickF",
      "links": [
        [
          "missile",
          "missile"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(transitive) To cause a missile to track (a target)."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "2 98 0",
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "lang_code": "pl",
          "sense": "to cause a missile to track",
          "tags": [
            "imperfective"
          ],
          "word": "celować"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "2 98 0",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "lang_code": "es",
          "sense": "to cause a missile to track",
          "word": "fijar"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "2 98 0",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "lang_code": "es",
          "sense": "to cause a missile to track",
          "word": "encauzar"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "10 5 85",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "12 10 78",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English phrasal verbs formed with \"on\"",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "7 7 86",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "7 6 87",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "6 6 89",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "15 12 74",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Polish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "13 9 78",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Spanish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To engage in a lock-on protest."
      ],
      "id": "en-lock_on-en-verb-DP6JOjkA",
      "links": [
        [
          "lock-on",
          "lock-on"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(intransitive) To engage in a lock-on protest."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌlɒk ˈɒn/",
      "tags": [
        "UK"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌlɑk ˈɑn/",
      "tags": [
        "US"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "lock on"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English phrasal verbs",
    "English phrasal verbs formed with \"on\"",
    "English verbs",
    "Entries with translation boxes",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Terms with Polish translations",
    "Terms with Spanish translations"
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "locks on",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "locking on",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "locked on",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "locked on",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "*"
      },
      "expansion": "lock on (third-person singular simple present locks on, present participle locking on, simple past and past participle locked on)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English intransitive verbs",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned"
      ],
      "coordinate_terms": [
        {
          "word": "lock in"
        },
        {
          "word": ";"
        },
        {
          "word": "home in"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              55,
              63
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "1997, Phil Husbands, Inman Harvey, Fourth European Conference on Artificial Life, page 356:",
          "text": "When the triangle came into view, the robot would then 'lock on' and move directly towards it, adjusting its course as it went.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              30,
              37
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2013, Jim Keys, Fighting Brits, page 255:",
          "text": "Glasgow's Sea Darts failed to lock on to the attackers, but the Sea Wolfs from Brilliant shot down one Skyhawk while another attacker crashed while trying to evade the missiles.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To begin tracking a target via an automated system."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "track",
          "track"
        ],
        [
          "target",
          "target"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(intransitive) To begin tracking a target via an automated system."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English transitive verbs"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To cause a missile to track (a target)."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "missile",
          "missile"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(transitive) To cause a missile to track (a target)."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English intransitive verbs"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To engage in a lock-on protest."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "lock-on",
          "lock-on"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(intransitive) To engage in a lock-on protest."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌlɒk ˈɒn/",
      "tags": [
        "UK"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌlɑk ˈɑn/",
      "tags": [
        "US"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "lang_code": "pl",
      "sense": "to begin tracking a target via an automated system",
      "tags": [
        "imperfective"
      ],
      "word": "śledzić"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "lang_code": "es",
      "sense": "to begin tracking a target via an automated system",
      "word": "fijarse"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "lang_code": "pl",
      "sense": "to cause a missile to track",
      "tags": [
        "imperfective"
      ],
      "word": "celować"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "lang_code": "es",
      "sense": "to cause a missile to track",
      "word": "fijar"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "lang_code": "es",
      "sense": "to cause a missile to track",
      "word": "encauzar"
    }
  ],
  "word": "lock on"
}

Download raw JSONL data for lock on meaning in English (3.1kB)

{
  "called_from": "page/2530",
  "msg": "skipping string in the middle of translations: </table></div></div>\n\n",
  "path": [
    "lock on"
  ],
  "section": "English",
  "subsection": "verb",
  "title": "lock on",
  "trace": ""
}

{
  "called_from": "page/2530",
  "msg": "skipping string in the middle of translations: </table></div></div>",
  "path": [
    "lock on"
  ],
  "section": "English",
  "subsection": "verb",
  "title": "lock on",
  "trace": ""
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2026-03-25 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2026-03-03 using wiktextract (05c257f and 9d9a410). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.