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block system

American  

noun

Railroads.
  1. a series of consecutive blocks.

  2. a system of blocks and block signals for controlling train movements.


Etymology

Origin of block system

First recorded in 1860–65

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.

See Examples For:

We have focused our analysis on warnings issued since 1 December, which is when the IDF launched its block system as a way of providing more precise instructions than previously, after coming under international pressure.

From BBC Apr. 5, 2024

But people we spoke to have described struggling to get online to access the system, as well as finding the block system difficult to understand, notwithstanding the errors.

From BBC Apr. 5, 2024

The service's block system is also easily circumvented, either by creating another handle or by logging out to see the tweets of those who have you blocked.

From The Verge Jul. 22, 2016

It amounted to the sort of block system that railroads use.

From Time Magazine Archive

The coal company used the block system, he said, each block being seventy-five feet by ninety feet.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

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