as in member
one of the parts that make up a whole
historically the infantry division has been a basic building block of armies
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Recent Examples of building block
The scene came in a fictional segment parodying Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead in which Maggie defends her architectural talents after her daycare teacher punishes her for making beautiful structures from building blocks.
—
Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Dec. 2025
The ecstasy of love and the fear of passing poison through one’s blood are, for Dijon, building blocks as elemental as drums.
—Paul A. Thompson, Pitchfork, 8 Dec. 2025
Carbon turns building block Rahbar says the global dependence on concrete urgently needs rethinking.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 5 Dec. 2025
Protein is made up of amino acids, which are known as building blocks.
—Karen Berger, Verywell Health, 30 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for building block
Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Dec. 2025
The ecstasy of love and the fear of passing poison through one’s blood are, for Dijon, building blocks as elemental as drums.
—Paul A. Thompson, Pitchfork, 8 Dec. 2025
Carbon turns building block Rahbar says the global dependence on concrete urgently needs rethinking.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 5 Dec. 2025
Protein is made up of amino acids, which are known as building blocks.
—Karen Berger, Verywell Health, 30 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for building block
Recent Examples of Synonyms for building block
Noun
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On Tuesday, three members of the council, Leslie Voltaire, Edgard Leblanc Fils and Louis Gérald Gilles, announced the creation of a new three-member presidential college to lead the next phase of the transition.—
JACQUELINE CHARLES MIAMI HERALD,
Arkansas Online,
6 Feb. 2026
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Alexseyev has had significant involvement in the war in Ukraine, serving as one of Russia’s negotiators in the secret talks with a member of the Ukrainian parliament to end Russia’s 2022 siege of the strategic city of Mariupol, Ukraine.—
Anna Chernova,
CNN Money,
6 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Joining Air New Zealand just as the COVID-19 pandemic loomed, Foran tackled a series of crises, from persistent shortages of engine components to the grounding of up to 11 aircraft.—
Alexander Coolidge,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
9 Feb. 2026
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However, Zelenskyy, backed by European leaders and some members of Congress, has insisted that the sanctions regime against Russia must instead be tightened to starve the Russian war machine of revenue and Western technological components.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Joe Brusuelas, senior economist at RSM US, highlighted a few of those factors when pushing back on White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett’s claim Monday that subdued job gains are primarily the result of lower population figures and higher productivity.—
Alicia Wallace,
CNN Money,
11 Feb. 2026
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Mindfulness is one factor of the Eightfold Path, and those other factors are extremely important.—
Jay Caspian Kang,
New Yorker,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The team analyzed 44 elements and found no single universal reaction to space; instead, microbial metabolism changed in distinct, element-specific ways.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Feb. 2026
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Sugar does have benefits for feeding cut flowers, which is why it's added to the mixtures used by florists, but in flower food formulas, the sucrose is blended with antimicrobial elements to keep the water free from bacteria.—
Peg Aloi,
The Spruce,
11 Feb. 2026
Noun
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And isn’t that about to become the defining ingredient of all future Hall of Fame voting, sooner than later?—
Jayson Stark,
New York Times,
10 Feb. 2026
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Both coffee and tea contain bioactive ingredients such as polyphenols and caffeine, which may reduce inflammation and cellular damage while defending against cognitive decline.—
Khloe Quill,
FOXNews.com,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Building block.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/building%20block. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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