What is lock and load term?

Answer 1

Lock and Load

This imperative phrase originally referred to the operation of the M1

Garand Rifle, the standard U.S. Army rifle of WWII. Its meaning is more

general now, referring to preparation for any imminent event.

The original phrase was actually reversed, "load and lock." The phrase

refers to inserting a clip of ammunition into the rifle, "loading," and

"locking" the bolt forward thereby forcing a round into the chamber. The

phrase first appears in Gach's 1941-42 In the Army Now. It was

immortalized by John Wayne (who else?) in 1949's Sands of Iwo Jima,

where the Duke reversed the phrase to the current "lock and load."

The term "lock" in this phrase is a different use of the word than in

references to the firing mechanism of a weapon, as in "flintlock." http://www.xent.com/pipermail/fork/2002-June/012965.html