Blŏck1, n.
n. [D. & Dan. blok; Sw. & Ger. block, O. H. Ger. bloch, Icel. blökkr, Fr. bloc.]
Sense 1. A solid mass of wood, stone, &c., usually with one or more plane, or approximately plane, faces.
“A shapeless block.” Everett.
Now all our neighbors’ chimneys smoke, And Christmas blocks are burning. Withers.
Sense 2. The mass of wood on which criminals are beheaded.
By the noble heads which have been brought to the block. Everett.
Sense 3. The wooden mold on which hats, bonnets, &c., are shaped; hence, sometimes, the pattern or shape of a hat, or the hat itself.
He wears his faith but as the fashion of his hat; it ever changes with the next block. Shak.
Sense 4. A connected mass or row of buildings; as, a block of houses or stores. [Amer.]
Sense 5. A square, or portion of a city inclosed by streets, whether occupied by buildings or composed of vacant lots. [Amer.]
The new city was laid out in rectangular blocks, each block containing 30 building-lots. Such an average block, comprising 282 houses and covering nine acres of ground, exists in Oxford Street. It forms a compact, square mass. Lond. Quar. Rev.
Sense 6. A system of one or more pulleys or sheaves, so arranged in a frame or shell, as to multiply the power applied to the rope passing around them, or change the direction of its action; — used in the rigging of ships, and for lifting or moving great weights.
Sense 7. (Falconry.) The perch on which a bird of prey is kept.
Sense 8. Any obstruction, or cause of obstruction; a stop; hinderance; obstacle.
No crime is block enough in our way to stop our flight. Decay of Piety.
Sense 9. A blockhead; a stupid fellow. [Obs.]
What a block art thou! Shak.