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Glite Dictionary
cellblock

cellblock

12 4.9
A part of a prison that has several cells for prisoners
  • noun
  • /ˈsɛlˌblɑk/
translation icon : bloque de celdas
  • Anyone headed to cellblock "a," step this way.
  • inmates on this cellblock
  • main cellblock
  • cellblock floor

Examples

  • I met him in the cellblock.

    Where the Day Takes You (1992)

  • The inmate from cellblock D.

    The Longest Yard (2005)

  • Probably everybody in cellblock E.

    Ocean's Eleven (2001)

  • The two guys, they were from another cellblock, went ahead without me.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • The whole cellblock heard it.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • Lock that prisoner up, and search this cellblock!

    Falling from Grace (1992)

  • Return to your cellblocks for evening count.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • You're lucky to be in this cellblock.

    Birdman of Alcatraz (1962)

  • With some 660 prisoners, this is reputed to be the world's largest cellblock.

    Academic text (2005)

  • Prisoners are kept in a cellblock with other inmates but have their own cells.

Synonyms

block
vscellblock
126 2.0

A part of a large building with separate rooms

refers specifically to a prison area rather than any building section
ward
vscellblock
36 6.5

A section of a prison where prisoners live

is the same prison division but called by a different name

How Big

correctional facility
  • Formal
10 4.2
wing
122 3.0
cellblock
12 4.9
holding cell
33 4.1

Surface Forms

cellblock singular
cellblocks plural

Etymology

Cellblock comes from the parts cell (an old word for a 'small room') and block (a 'group' or part of a building). Think of a 'block' made of many small 'cells', which is why a cellblock is the part of a prison that holds a number of prisoners' cells.