# bloc

Pronunciation: say "BLOK" US /blɑk/, UK /blɒk/

## Noun

1. A group of countries acting together to advance common political or economic goals, forming an alliance.
   - Simple: A group of countries that work together for shared political or economic goals.
   - _The European bloc negotiated as a single party in the climate talks._
   - _Member states of the bloc coordinated their sanctions against the regime._
2. A group of voters or politicians who share common goals and tend to act together.
   - Simple: A group of voters or lawmakers who share the same goals and act together.
   - _The conservative bloc blocked the bill from reaching a final vote._
   - _Labor unions formed a voting bloc that swayed the primary results._

## Origin

Borrowed from French bloc ('group, block'), ultimately of Old Dutch origin, from Frankish or Proto-West Germanic *blokk, from Proto-Germanic *blukką ('beam, log'). It is a doublet of block.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/bloc (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).