locker
Americannoun
-
lockers
plural
-
a chest, drawer, compartment, closet, or the like, that may be locked, especially one at a gymnasium, school, etc. for storage and safekeeping of clothing and valuables.
-
Nautical. a chest or compartment in which to stow things.
-
a refrigerated compartment, as in a locker plant, that may be rented for storing frozen foods.
-
a person or thing that locks.
-
Digital Technology. music locker.
noun
-
-
a small compartment or drawer that may be locked, as one of several in a gymnasium, etc, for clothes and valuables
-
( as modifier )
a locker room
-
-
a person or thing that locks
-
a refrigerated compartment for keeping frozen foods, esp one rented in an establishment
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of locker
First recorded in 1375–1425, locker is from the late Middle English word loker. See lock 1, -er 1
Explanation
A locker is a small closet or cabinet with a lock where you can keep your jacket and other possessions for a while. High school students typically have lockers for storing their books (and their smelly gym socks). You might use a locker at school, when you're visiting a museum and need a place to leave your backpack, or at the gym. In fact, most gyms and swimming pools have "locker rooms," where you can change into your workout clothes and store your regular clothes and shoes, as well as your wallet, phone, and keys, in a locker. Locker has been used since the 14th century — and even earlier, although it originally meant "a lock."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The results can be found today in professional locker rooms around the country, today’s stars never forgetting the 5-foot-4 bulldog who gave them their first headline.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
“I know I haven’t done my job,” said Díaz, speaking to reporters at his locker before Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
When Abe Saperstein, the Globetrotters’ founder, stormed the Reds locker room in a huff, Klotz warned him, “If you let your guard down, we’ll get you again.”
From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2026
We ducked under a gate and surrounded Ernie as he headed to the locker room.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
Coal slammed his locker, realized he forgot to take his math homework, and opened it up again.
From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste
Kamel Chibli, vice president of the Occitanie regional council in southern France, said digital pouches and lockers used to store smartphones cost the regional authorities around 40,000 euros for a high school with 1,500 students.
From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026
Success Academy has dark millwork lockers with no locks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
PopWheels, a New York startup, supplies and charges them at nearby fire-resistant lockers.
From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026
As a result of the task force, McLucas ordered an overhaul: public lockers, of which there were 14,000 total in 140 airports, would be moved to more secure areas.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
A couple people laugh, and then everyone turns back to their lockers and their conversations.
From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
