block
/blɑk/noun, verb
block is spelled B-L-O-C-K: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 76 times per million words in written English, the 1,394th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “bloc vs block” about 260 times a month (Google, United States). As a noun, block means “A substantial, often approximately cuboid, piece of any substance” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of block is blocks.
How many letters and syllables are in block?
| Letters | 5: B-L-O-C-K |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 76 times per million words; the 1,394th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Sounds like | |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is block?
Block appears 76 times per million words in written English, the 1,394th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce block?
- UK /blɒk/
- US /blɑk/
Block has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-block.ogg, En-au-block.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with block
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sounds like: bloc (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with block?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as block from its last stressed vowel (/ɑk/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of block
- blocks plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- blocking participle, present
- blocked participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does block mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A substantial, often approximately cuboid, piece of any substance.
a block of ice; a block of stone
- 2
A chopping block: a cuboid base for cutting or beheading.
Anne Boleyn placed her head on the block and awaited her execution.
- 3
A wig block: a simplified head model upon which wigs are worn.
- 4
A mould on which hats, bonnets, etc., are shaped.
- 5
datedA piece of hard wood on which a stereotype or electrotype plate is mounted.
- 6
A case or frame housing one or more sheaves (pulleys), used with ropes to increase or redirect force, for example as part of lifting gear or a sailing ship's rigging. See also block and tackle.
- 7
A section of split logs used as fuel.
- 8
A set of sheets (of paper) joined together at one end, forming a cuboid shape.
a block of 100 tickets
verb
- 1
To fill or obstruct (something) so that it is not possible to pass.
The pipe was blocked by leaves.
- 2
To prevent (something or someone) from passing.
A broken-down car is blocking the traffic.
- 3
To prevent (something from happening or someone from doing something).
His plan to take over the business was blocked by the boss.
- 4
To impede (an opponent or opponent’s play).
He blocked the basketball player’s shot.
- 5
To specify the positions and movements of the actors for (a section of a play or film).
It was very difficult to block this scene convincingly.
- 6
To hit with a block.
- 7
To play a block shot.
- 8
To bar (impose a ban on a person or bot, etc.) from connecting via telephone, instant messaging, etc., or from accessing an online account or service, or similar.
I tried to send you a message, but you’ve blocked me!
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate block?
Wiktionary records 2 abbreviations of block: BEM, blk..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Block in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | bloc , billot , pâté de maisons , boucher, obstruer , bloquer |
| German | Block, Klotz , blockieren, verstopfen , abblocken |
| Portuguese | bloco , entupir, obstruir , bloquear , resma , cantão |
| Spanish | bloque, bloqueta , bloquear, atascar , block, bloc |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does block come from?
From Middle English blok (“log, stump, solid piece”), from Old French bloc (“log, block”), from Middle Dutch blok (“treetrunk”), from Old Dutch *blok (“log”), from Proto-West Germanic *blokk, from Proto-Germanic *blukką (“beam, log”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰelǵ- (“thick plank, beam, pile, prop”). Cognate with Old Frisian blok, Old Saxon blok, Old High German bloh, bloc (“block”), Old English bolca (“gangway of a ship, plank”), Old Norse bǫlkr (“divider, partition”). More at balk. See also bloc, bulk.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).