noun
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a block of stone or other material, larger than a brick, used in building
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a component that fits with others to form a whole
standardized software building blocks
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another name for (the child's toy) block
Etymology
Origin of building block
First recorded in 1840–50
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
That extra building block can expand their biochemical capabilities.
From Science Daily
In pure water ice, more than 10 percent of the amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins, survived the full 50 million year simulation.
From Science Daily
“This isn’t going to happen overnight, but all the building blocks are being put in place.”
From Los Angeles Times
Commerce is becoming fragmented, and prices on the basic building blocks of the economy are more volatile.
These primitive objects, known as planetesimals, are leftover building blocks from planet formation.
From Science Daily
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
