Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

lock and load

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.24 in modern English

Syllables: lock- and load
IPA

19

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

2

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

intj

A command to prepare a weapon for battle.

American usage; Slang

intj

Prepare for an imminent event.

American usage; Slang

verb

To prepare one's weapon.

American usage; Slang

verb

To prepare for an imminent event.

American usage; Slang

Example Sentences

"1949 — John Wayne in the film Sands of Iwo Jima Lock and load, boy, lock and load."
"It's great to know that city and town governments, all up and down the East Coast, were ready, locked and loaded, to provide bailouts, and this time it was the literal kind."

Etymology

Attested since at least 1793, when a document describes flintlock weapons that are ready to fire as "well locked and loaded". The variant "load(ed) and lock(ed)" is found since at least 1815. The phrase may have originated from the use of gunlocks on naval artillery (in use by the Royal Navy since 1745); as gunlocks were not required for firing (a lintstock could be used) it may have been necessary to specify cannon was "locked" as well as loaded. As an imperative, used since at least 1940, in the U.S. Army Field Manual for the M1 Rifle. Compare e.g. German "laden und sichern" ("load and secure"). Popularized in culture after being used by John Wayne in Sands of Iwo Jima (1949).

Usage

American usage
Slang

Inflected Forms

locks and loads (present, singular) locking and loading (participle, present) locked and loaded (participle, past) locked and loaded (past)

Phrases

loaded for bear

Frequently Paired Words

loaded for bear

Questions

What does lock and load mean?: A command to prepare a weapon for battle.
Where does lock and load come from?: Attested since at least 1793, when a document describes flintlock weapons that are ready to fire as "well locked and loaded". The variant "load(ed) and lock(ed)" is found since at least 1815. The phrase may have originated from the use of gunlocks on naval artillery (in use by the Royal Navy since 1745); as gunlocks were not required for firing (a lintstock could be used) it may have been necessary to specify cannon was "locked" as well as loaded. As an imperative, used since at least 1940, in the U.S. Army Field Manual for the M1 Rifle. Compare e.g. German "laden und sichern" ("load and secure"). Popularized in culture after being used by John Wayne in Sands of Iwo Jima (1949).

How to pronounce lock and load

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