Etymograph

English

lock

Lock comes from Middle English lok, from Old English loc, from Proto-Germanic *luką, from PIE *lewg- ‘to bend’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewg-1‘to bend’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*luką1reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*lok1‘shutter’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150loc1
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lok1
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1697lock1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English lock
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1697, Virgil, The Fifth Book of the Æneis: “Sergestus, eager with his beak to press / Betwixt…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewg-Wiktionary, English lock‘to bend’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*lukąWiktionary, English lockreconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*lokWiktionary, English lock‘shutter’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150locWiktionary, English lock
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lokWiktionary, English lock
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1697lockWiktionary, English lock. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1697, Virgil, The Fifth Book of the Æneis: “Sergestus, eager with his beak to press / Betwixt…”

Word family

English words that share an ancestor with lock, grouped by the ancestor they share, most familiar first.

through Proto-Indo-European *lewg- ‘to bend’

  • reluctant ← reluctāns ← reluctor ← lū̆ctor
  • reluctance ← relū̆ctor ← lū̆ctor
  • leek ← lēac ← *lauk ← *laukaz ← *leukaną
  • loke ← loca ← *lukô

16 more relatives in the full family tree

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Another origin of lock

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewg-‘to bend’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lugnó-reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*lukkaz‘lock (of hair)’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*lokkreconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150locc‘hair of the head, hair, lock of hair, curl, ringlet’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lok
  7. Englishtodaylock

It has been theorised that the word may be related to the Gothic verb *𐌻𐌿𐌺𐌰𐌽 (*lukan, “to shut”) in its ancient meaning "to curb".

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Today it means

noun Something used for fastening, which can only be opened with a key or combination.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “lock”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *lewg- / lock