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# lockjaw

noun (lockjaw — uncountable)

«lockjaw» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. An old everyday name for tetanus, a serious illness caused by germs getting into a wound, which makes muscles go stiff. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/L/lockjaw/#m1)
2. A tight cramp of the jaw muscles so that the mouth will not open properly. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/L/lockjaw/#m2)

### In the lessons

In health and safety lessons, children learn that a deep cut from a rusty nail or dirty soil can let tetanus germs in; the illness is sometimes called lockjaw because the jaw muscles lock. Vaccines (jabs) protect against it. Phrases: get lockjaw, a tetanus jab.

### Examples

- Tetanus is also called lockjaw. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/L/lockjaw/#x1)
- The nurse gave me a jab to protect me from lockjaw. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/L/lockjaw/#x2)
- Lockjaw makes the jaw muscles go stiff. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/L/lockjaw/#x3)
- Clean any cut from a rusty nail and tell an adult. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/L/lockjaw/#x4)
- In the old days many farmers caught lockjaw. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/L/lockjaw/#x5)
- Grandad said, «Mind that nail or you'll get lockjaw!» [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/L/lockjaw/#x6)
- Vaccines have made lockjaw rare in many countries. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/L/lockjaw/#x7)

### Note

Uncountable. The medical name is tetanus. Myth: rust itself does not cause it; germs in soil and dirt do, and rusty objects are often dirty. A wound that might have tetanus germs needs a doctor.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «lockjaw» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/L/lockjaw/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«lockjaw» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/lockjaw.html) on Mova free.