under lock and key
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.
The sorrows that trouble him he keeps under lock and key.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 4, 2025
"I didn’t appreciate its significance then, it was kept in our house in Caerphilly but my dad kept it under lock and key," she said.
From BBC • May 5, 2025
Just days before the stone was to be released, a federal court judge ordered that the emerald remain under lock and key until the federal case with Brazil concludes.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 13, 2024
They still use equipment the Yankees donated in 2019 during MLB’s debut in Europe — baseball’s are in sparse supply in the U.K., so the Mets keep their gameday stockpile under lock and key.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 6, 2024
“But you don’t know it equal to me. You must have been under lock and key, dear boy, to know it equal to me,—but I ain’t a-going to be low.”
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
