lock down

See also: lock-down and lockdown

English edit

lock down (third-person singular simple present locks down, present participle locking down, simple past and past participle locked down)

(transitive) To secure (something); to blockade and lock (a building or campus) so as to prevent ingress or egress; to make (people) stay locked indoors for their safety.
Coordinate terms: lock away, lock in, lock out, lock up

Police have the area locked down until the situation is all-clear.
(transitive) To limit the use of (a computer network) to only users with permission.
(transitive) To make (an arrangement) secure, definite, or permanent; to fix.
(transitive, slang) To cause (another person) to enter into an exclusive romantic relationship.
It took me some time, but I finally locked her down.
(intransitive, boating) To travel through a flight of locks on a waterway in a downhill direction.
Antonym: lock up

Hypernym: lock through

to secure; make people stay locked indoors for their safety