blɔk n.,
v., & adj. --n. 1 a
solid hewn or unhewn
piece of
hard material,
esp. of rock,
stone, or
wood (block of ice). 2 a flat-topped block used as a base
for chopping, beheading,
standing something on, hammering on, or for
mounting a
horse from. 3 a a
large building, esp.
when subdivided (block of flats). b a compact mass of buildings bounded by (usu. four) streets. 4 an
obstruction;
anything preventing
progress or
normal working (a block in
the pipe). 5 a
chock for
stopping the
motion of a
wheel etc. 6 a
pulley or
system of pulleys mounted in a case. 7 (in pl.)
any of a set of solid cubes
etc., used as a child's
toy. 8
Printing a piece of wood or
metal engraved for printing on
paper or
fabric. 9 a head-shaped mould used for shaping hats or wigs. 10 sl. the
head (knock
his block off). 11 US a the
area between streets in a
town or
suburb. b the
length of
such an area, esp. as a
measure of
distance (lives
three blocks away). 12 a
stolid,
unimaginative, or
hard-hearted person. 13 a large
quantity or allocation of things treated as a
unit, esp. shares, seats in a
theatre, etc. 14 a set of sheets of paper used for
writing, or esp.
drawing, glued
along one edge. 15 Cricket a
spot on
which a
batsman blocks the ball
before the
wicket,
and rests the bat before playing. 16
Athletics = starting-block. 17 Amer.
Football a blocking
action. 18
Austral. a a tract of
land offered to an
individual settler by a
government. b a large area of land. --v.tr. 1 a (often foll. by up)
obstruct (a passage etc.) (the road
was blocked;
you are blocking my view). b put obstacles in the
way of (progress etc.). 2
restrict the
use or
conversion of (currency or any
other asset). 3 use a block for
making (a
hat, wig, etc.). 4
emboss or impress a
design on (a
book cover). 5 Cricket
stop (a ball)
with a bat defensively. 6 Amer. Football
intercept (an opponent) with one's
body. --attrib.adj. treating (many
similar things) as one unit (block booking). øblock and
tackle a system of pulleys and ropes, esp. for lifting. block capitals (or letters) letters printed
without serifs, or
written with
each letter separate and in capitals. block
diagram a diagram
showing the
general arrangement of parts of an
apparatus. block in 1
sketch roughly;
plan. 2
confine. block
mountain Geol. a mountain formed by
natural faults. block
out 1 a
shut out (light,
noise, etc.). b
exclude from
memory, as
being too painful. 2 sketch roughly; plan. block-ship Naut. a
ship used to block a channel. block system a system by which no
railway train may enter a
section that is
not clear. block
tin refined tin
cast in ingots. block up 1 confine; shut (a person etc.)
in. 2
infill (a
window,
doorway, etc.) with bricks etc. block
vote a vote
proportional in
power to the
number of
people a
delegate represents.
mental (or psychological) block a
particular mental
inability due to
subconscious emotional factors. on the block US being auctioned. put the blocks on
prevent from
proceeding. øøblocker n. [ME f. OF
bloc, bloquer f. MDu. blok, of unkn. orig.]