Word Confusion: Loch versus Lock

Posted November 18, 2021 by Kathy Davie in Author Resources, Self-Editing, Word Confusions, Writing

A pair of heterographs (a subset of homophone), Loch vs Lock may sound alike but are quite different.

A loch is strictly a lake — a noun. That’s it.

Now, a lock is both a noun and a verb (rarely used though it is) and is a device used to secure something or keep something out.

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Exploring Later . . .

You may want to explore “Anchorage, Haven, Moorage, and Roadstead“, “Arroyo vs Coulee vs Wadi vs Wash“, “Bay vs Bight vs Cove“, “Bayou vs Bog vs Marsh vs Swamp“, “Beach vs Coast vs Shore“, “Born vs Borne vs Bourn“, “Brook vs Burn vs Draw vs Lick“, “Canal vs Impoundment vs Moat vs Reservoir“, “Cay vs Key vs Quay“, “Channel vs Dyke vs Rill“, “Creak versus Creek“, “Dam versus Damn“, “Delta vs Estuary vs Rapids vs Source“, “Dock vs Pier vs Wharf“, “Firth vs Fjord vs Gulf“, “Harbor vs Marina vs Port vs Quay“, “Lakes: Kettle, Loch, Mere, and Oxbow“, “Ocean versus Sea“, “Peer versus Pier“, “River vs Stream vs Tributary“, “Rivulet vs Runnel vs Sike“, “Sea versus See“, “Slew versus Slough“, and “Straight versus Strait“.

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Word Confusions . . .

. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.

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Loch	Lock
Loch Lomond by wfmillar is under the CC BY-SA 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons and courtesy of Geograph.org.uk.	Keys and Padlocks is in the public domain, via PxFuel. — More locks include deadbolts, knob locks, lever handle locks, mortise locks, cam locks, etc.
Part of Grammar:
Noun Plural: lochs	Noun ¹, ²; Verb ¹, intransitive & transitive Plural for the noun: locks Gerund: locking Third person present verb: locks Past tense or past participle: locked Present participle: locking
[Scottish] A lake [Also sea loch] An arm of the sea, especially when narrow or partially landlocked	Noun: A mechanism for keeping a door, lid, etc., fastened, typically operated only by a key of a particular form ¹ A device used to prevent the operation or movement of a vehicle or other machine A facility on a computer or mobile phone that requires a user to verify their identity with a passcode or other form of authentication in order to access the full functionality of the device [Wrestling and martial arts] A hold that prevents an opponent from moving a limb [Archaic; noun singular] A number of interlocked or jammed items A short confined section of a canal or other waterway in which the water level can be changed by the use of gates and sluices, used for raising and lowering vessels between two gates [North American; informal; a lock] A person or thing that is certain to succeed A certainty [Historical] A mechanism for exploding the charge of a gun A piece of a person’s hair that coils or hangs together ² [Literary; locks] A person’s hair A tuft of wool or cotton [locks] Short for dreadlocks Verb, intransitive: [Of a door, window, box, etc.] Become or be able to be secured through activation of a mechanism ¹ Enclose or shut in by tightly fastening a door, lid, etc. Make or become rigidly fixed or immovable [With adverbial of direction] Go through a short confined section on a canal Verb, transitive: Fasten or secure (something) with a mechanism ¹ Restrict access to the full functionality or data of (a computer, mobile phone, file, etc.), especially by requiring a user to verify their identity with a passcode or other form of authentication [Of a mobile phone; be locked] Operate only on the network of a particular carrier Make or become rigidly fixed or immovable To shut in a place fastened by a device or devices, as for security or restraint To make fast or immovable by, or as if by, a mechanism to make secure To join or unite firmly by interlinking or intertwining To hold fast in an embrace To move (a ship) by means of a short confined section(s), as in a canal (often followed by through, in, out, down, or up) To furnish with short confined section(s), as a canal
Examples:
Loch Lomond is the largest freshwater lake in Scotland. Loch Ness has long been rumored to be the home of the Loch Ness monster. Lochs are most numerous in the Scottish Highlands.	Noun: The key turned firmly in the lock. I really need a bicycle lock. There’s a security lock on the phone, and he doesn’t know the code. With that lock, there’s no way Smith can get out of it. Were you kept under lock and key? The street is closed by a lock of carriages. There was a lock every quarter of a mile. All of this makes him a lock to make the Hall of Fame. A lock for muzzle- and breech-loading firearms was generally mounted on the outside. She pushed back a lock of hair. He had flowing locks and a long white beard. Paradise Fibers sells dyed wool locks for felting, spinning, carding, or dollmaking. Bob Marley had some locks! Verb, intransitive: The door will automatically lock behind you. This door locks with a key. He is treated like an unpaid servant and locked in his room. There are gears that lock into place. Their gazes locked for several long moments. The vessel was locked in ice. We locked through at Moore Haven. Verb, transitive: She closed and locked her desk. My computer is locked and I’ve forgotten my login info. I don’t want people to read my emails — that’s why I lock my phone. He locked up the wheels of a wagon. My phone is locked to T-mobile. He’s locked up tight. He locked the steering wheel on his car. The frost locks up our rivers. The rioters locked arms and plowed through the police line. She was locked in his arms. The ship locked through seven locks to get out to sea. The Autoridad del Canal de Panamá have developed a master plan for 2025 locking additional locks to the canal.
Derivatives:
	Adjective: lock-knit, lockable, locked, lockless Noun: lock-in, lockage, lockbox, lockdown, locked-in, locker, lockout, lockset, locksmith, lockup
Phrasal Verb
	lock away lock down lock down someone lock down something lock in lock in someone lock in something lock into lock into someone lock into something lock on lock out lock out someone lock someone lock someone down lock someone out lock someone up lock something down lock something up lock up lock up someone lock up something locked in something
History of the Word:
Late Middle English from the Scottish Gaelic.	Old English loc is of Germanic origin and related to the German Loch meaning hole. Old English locc is of Germanic origin and related to the Dutch lok, the German Locke, possibly also to lock¹.

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C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

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