padlock

[pad-lok]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR padlock ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a portable or detachable lock with a pivoted or sliding shackle that can be passed through a link, ring, staple, or the like.

verb (used with object)

to fasten with or as with a padlock.

Origin of padlock

First recorded in 1425–75, padlock is from the late Middle English word padlok. See pod³, lock¹

Related formsun·pad·locked, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for padlock

grip, latch, bolt, screw, pin, nut, rod, pipe, fastener, spike, rivet, blockade, fix, clinch, settle, cement, clamp, bar, hook, fastening

Examples from the Web for padlock

Contemporary Examples of padlock

On the Pont des Arts we buy a padlock engraved with our initials, T and E.
Discovering The Charms Of La France Profonde
Emma Woolf
June 9, 2014
Yet Romney happily slid his leg into this manacle, slammed down the padlock, and threw the key into the river.
Michael Tomasky: Obama’s High-Stakes Gamble on Gay Marriage
Michael Tomasky
May 10, 2012
One tent had a padlock on the front, a visible if not effective request for some privacy.
Stimulus Dollars for Sex Offenders?
Gerald Posner
September 4, 2009

Historical Examples of padlock

After refastening the padlock, they both returned to the bench.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola
He got out with a padlock and chain; and, having put these in place, offered Alice his hand.
Alice Adams
Booth Tarkington
As he placed the key in the padlock, he could hear the rattle of the chains of the man inside.
Murder Point
Coningsby Dawson
He walked to the door and took out his gun as he examined the padlock.
The Coyote
James Roberts
When the padlock snapped behind him Code took in his surroundings.
The Harbor of Doubt
Frank Williams

British Dictionary definitions for padlock

padlock

noun

a detachable lock having a hinged or sliding shackle, which can be used to secure a door, lid, etc, by passing the shackle through rings or staples

verb

(tr) to fasten with or as if with a padlock

Word Origin for padlock

C15 pad, of obscure origin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for padlock

"removable lock," late 15c., from lokke (see lock (n.)), but the first element is of unknown origin.

1640s, from padlock (n.). Related: Padlocked; padlocking.