Block

1. v. t. A section of a railroad where the block system is used. See Block system, below.
2. v. t. A piece of wood more or less bulky; a solid mass of wood, stone, etc., usually with one or more plane, or approximately plane, faces; as, a block on which a butcher chops his meat; a block by which to mount a horse; children’s playing blocks, etc.
3. v. t. The solid piece of wood on which condemned persons lay their necks when they are beheaded.
4. v. t. The wooden mold on which hats, bonnets, etc., are shaped.
5. v. t. The pattern or shape of a hat.
6. v. t. A large or long building divided into separate houses or shops, or a number of houses or shops built in contact with each other so as to form one building; a row of houses or shops.
7. v. t. A square, or portion of a city inclosed by streets, whether occupied by buildings or not.
8. v. t. A grooved pulley or sheave incased in a frame or shell which is provided with a hook, eye, or strap, by which it may be attached to an object. It is used to change the direction of motion, as in raising a heavy object that can not be conveniently reached, and also, when two or more such sheaves are compounded, to change the rate of motion, or to exert increased force; — used especially in the rigging of ships, and in tackles.
9. v. t. The perch on which a bird of prey is kept.
10. v. t. Any obstruction, or cause of obstruction; a stop; a hindrance; an obstacle; as, a block in the way.
11. 1v. t. 1 A section of a railroad where the block system is used. See Block system, below.
12. 1v. t. 1 A piece of wood more or less bulky; a solid mass of wood, stone, etc., usually with one or more plane, or approximately plane, faces; as, a block on which a butcher chops his meat; a block by which to mount a horse; children’s playing blocks, etc.

The word meanings were obtained from OPTED(The Online Plain Text English Dictionary), which is based on “The Project Gutenberg Etext of Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary” which is in turn based on the 1913 US Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary (See Project Gutenburg), as a text file.