Main Entry: ¹block

Pronunciation: \ˈbläk\

Function: noun

Usage: often attributive

Etymology: Middle English blok, from Middle French & Middle Dutch; Middle French bloc, from Middle Dutch blok; akin to Old High German bloh block

Date: 14th century

1 : a compact usually solid piece of substantial material especially when worked or altered to serve a particular purpose: as a : the piece of wood on which the neck of a person condemned to be beheaded is laid for execution b : a mold or form on which articles are shaped or displayed c : a hollow rectangular building unit usually of artificial material d : a lightweight usually cubical and solid wooden or plastic building toy that is usually provided in sets e : the casting that contains the cylinders of an internal combustion engine f : starting block
2 a : obstacle b : an obstruction of an opponent's play in sports; especially : a halting or impeding of the progress or movement of an opponent in football by use of the body c (1) : interruption of normal physiological function (as of a tissue or organ); especially : heart block (2) : local anesthesia (as by injection) produced by interruption of the flow of impulses along a nerve d : interruption or cessation especially of train of thought by competing thoughts or psychological suppression — compare writer's block
3 slang : head 1 <threatened to knock his block off>
4 : a wooden or metal case enclosing one or more pulleys and having a hook, eye, or strap by which it may be attached
5 : a piece of material (as wood or linoleum) having on its surface a hand-cut design from which impressions are to be printed
6 a (1) : a usually rectangular space (as in a city) enclosed by streets and occupied by or intended for buildings (2) : the distance along one of the sides of such a block b (1) : a large building divided into separate functional units (2) : a line of row houses (3) : a distinctive part of a building or integrated group of buildings
7 : a platform from which property is sold at auction
8 a : a quantity, number, or section of things dealt with as a unit b : bloc 2

— on the block : for sale