block up
block up — idiom
1. when a pipe, drain, tube, or other narrow channel becomes filled with material s
when a pipe, drain, tube, or other narrow channel becomes filled with material such as dirt or waste, stopping the normal flow of liquid or air through it — for example, a kitchen sink blocking up after oil is poured down it
The kitchen sink kept blocking up because Meera poured cooking oil down the drain.
blocking up (intransitive) — pipe fills with waste material
Hyun noticed her nose was blocking up from the strong pollen outside.
The shower drain blocked up after Quinn washed sand from the beach.
Kemi called a plumber when the main pipe in the basement blocked up completely.
- clog
more common for drains and pipes; slightly more informal
- get blocked
passive equivalent with the same core meaning
- unblock
the direct opposite — to clear the pipe so flow resumes
文法句型
pipe/drain + blocks up
block something up (transitive use)
用法筆記
This sense is most common intransitively (the pipe blocks up), describing an accidental or natural clogging process rather than a deliberate action.
常見錯誤
block up — phrasal verb
- block upbase form
- blocks up3rd person singular
- blocking up-ing form
- blocked uppast simple
1. to close a hole, gap, or entrance completely by putting material into or across
to close a hole, gap, or entrance completely by putting material into or across it — for example, blocking up a crack in the wall with putty or blocking up a chimney with bricks to prevent drafts
Gabriel blocked up the cracks around the window frame with fresh putty before winter.
block something up (transitive) — fill a gap deliberately
Astrid and her father blocked up the old chimney with bricks to stop the drafts.
The construction workers blocked up the old doorway with a wall of concrete blocks.
Salma and her neighbour blocked up the mouse hole behind the kitchen cupboard.
- open
the general opposite — to make an opening usable again
文法句型
block something up
block up something
用法筆記
Always transitive in this sense — the agent deliberately fills an opening. The object can come between block and up (block the hole up) or after (block up the hole).