26984 words

block

31 definitions • 53 examples
1
the distance along a street from where one road crosses it to the place where the next road crosses it, or one part of a street like this, especially in a town or city:

Examples:

The museum is just six blocks away.
My friend and I live on the same block.
2
a square group of buildings or houses with roads on each side:

Examples:

I took a walk around the block.
3
on the next street that crosses this street:

Examples:

He lives just around the block.
4
a solid, straight-sided piece of hard material:

Examples:

a block of wood/ice
5
(in the past) a large piece of wood on which criminals had their head cut off:

Examples:

He placed his neck on the block and the executioner released the blade.
6
to be killed by having your head cut off:

Examples:

Anne Boleyn went to the block.
She went to the block with great courage and dignity.
Sir Thomas chose to go to the block rather than renounce his religion.
He went to the block still proclaiming his loyalty to the king.
After the plot was uncovered, the Earl was arrested and went to the block.
7
a large, usually tall building divided into separate parts for use as offices or homes by several different organizations or people:

Examples:

office block They are erecting a new office block downtown.
UK a tower block
UK a block of flats
8
a group of things bought, dealt with, or considered together:

Examples:

9
something that blocks a tube or opening:

Examples:

A block in (= an object blocking) the pipe was preventing the water from coming through.
10
in sport, the act of stopping or trying to stop an opponent or the ball from moving forwards:

Examples:

The defender made a lunging block.
11
to prevent movement through something:

Examples:

block someone's way As she left the court, an angry crowd tried to block her way.
A fallen tree is blocking the road.
12
to be between someone and the thing they are looking at, so that they cannot see:

Examples:

My view was blocked by a tall man in front of me.
13
to stop something from happening or succeeding:

Examples:

She was very talented and I felt her parents were blocking her progress.
14
in sport, to stop an opponent or the ball from moving forwards:

Examples:

Nobody blocked him as he ran into the open space.
She jumped up and blocked the shot.
15
If a bank blocks someone's account, they make it impossible for that person to remove money from it:

Examples:

Federal agents blocked the accounts of five money-transfer operations in the city.
16
to stop emails, text messages, phone calls, etc. from being received:

Examples:

The carriers said they have rigorous filters to block spam, and they allow customers to block messages from certain numbers.
Prosecutors say Wilson allegedly made the calls from a blocked phone number.
17
on social media, to stop a particular person from being able to communicate with you or read what you have written:

Examples:

My mum found out that I blocked her on Twitter and gave me another serious talk.
In the Block Users section you should see a list of people you've blocked.
Someone you've blocked won't be able to add you to a group.
18
the buildings next to each other between crossing streets, or the distance from one street to the next in a city or town:

Examples:

There’s a good deli on this block.
19
A block is also an area enclosed by four streets that form a rectangle in a city or town:

Examples:

The new building will take up an entire city block.
20
a solid, straight-sided lump of hard material:
21
A block is also a child’s toy, usually a set of pieces of wood that can be arranged to make structures, walls, etc.
22
a group of things considered together, or an amount of something:

Examples:

a block of tickets/seats
a block of time
23
to prevent movement through or past something, or to prevent something from happening or succeeding:

Examples:

A large man in front of me blocked my view.
Earl scored 28 points and blocked five shots.
24
to decide officially to stop something from happening or continuing:

Examples:

The federal government's fight to block a bankruptcy settlement was rejected by the Supreme Court.
block a bid/deal/merger The Federal Trade Commission said it planned to block the merger.
25
if a bank blocks someone's account, they make it impossible for that person to remove money from it:

Examples:

Accounts of all suspected terrorists have been blocked.
26
to stop emails, text messages, phone calls, etc. from a particular person:

Examples:

The new phone allows users to block messages from particular senders.
27
a large number of shares that are sold by one organization at a particular time:

Examples:

Deutsche Bank placed a block of six million shares at 781p.
The shares were sold on the Toronto Stock Exchange in a block trade.
28
an official decision to stop something happening or continuing:

Examples:

a block on sth Lobbyists are calling for a block on bonuses to rail operators while their safety record is so poor.
put/remove a block on sth The government has put a block on all arms sales to the country.
29
a building consisting of several apartments, offices, etc.:

Examples:

There are four apartments in each block.
a block of office buildings
30

Examples:

She offers a beginner's guide to the newest pensions on the block.
A few more newspapers may go on the block before the end of the year.
31
to risk a bad thing happening to you, for example getting a bad reputation, by doing something or helping someone:

Examples:

Agency executives willing to lay their heads on the block in a pure results-driven agreement would be very brave.

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