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say it: blahk
block is a verb and noun meaning "render unsuitable for passage". It is pronounced /ˈblɑk/ — blahk. It carries 28 recorded senses.
interfere with or prevent the reception of signals
“Jam the Voice of America”
“block the signals emitted by this station”
interrupt the normal function of by means of anesthesia
“block a nerve”
“block a muscle”
support, secure, or raise with a block
“block a plate for printing”
“block the wheels of a car”
be unable to remember
“I'm drawing a blank”
“You are blocking the name of your first wife!”
prohibit the conversion or use of (assets)
“Blocked funds”
“Freeze the assets of this hostile government”
a rectangular area in a city surrounded by streets and usually containing several buildings
“he lives in the next block”
a number or quantity of related things dealt with as a unit
“he reserved a large block of seats”
“he held a large block of the company's stock”
(computer science) a sector or group of sectors that function as the smallest data unit permitted
“since blocks are often defined as a single sector, the terms `block' and `sector' are sometimes used interchangeably”
computer science
an inability to remember or think of something you normally can do; often caused by emotional tension
“I knew his name perfectly well but I had a temporary block”
a simple machine consisting of a wheel with a groove in which a rope can run to change the direction or point of application of a force applied to the rope
a metal casting containing the cylinders and cooling ducts of an engine
“the engine had to be replaced because the block was cracked”
an obstruction in a pipe or tube
“we had to call a plumber to clear out the blockage in the drainpipe”
a platform from which an auctioneer sells
“they put their paintings on the block”
the act of obstructing or deflecting someone's movements
Forms marked · are formed by the regular rule rather than recorded in the source data. English keeps a few hundred irregulars and the rest follow the pattern, so the rule is right far more often than not — but it is a rule, and the mark says so.
Definitions, synonyms and semantic relations for block come from Princeton University’s WordNet. The pronunciation comes from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. Commonness is measured against a corpus of everyday English. Full sources and licences.