Blöcken

Blöcken is the dative plural form of the German masculine noun Block. The base noun Block refers to a solid piece, such as a wooden block or a data block, and appears in everyday language as well as in technical contexts. In German, the plural forms are Blöcke for the nominative and accusative cases and Blöcken for the dative case. Therefore, with a definite article the dative plural becomes den Blöcken.

Blöcken appears whenever the noun Block is governed by a dative case, often after prepositions that require the dative. Common examples include: mit den Blöcken (with the blocks), aus den Blöcken (out of the blocks), or bei den Blöcken (by/at the blocks). Without a definite article, the dative plural can also appear as mit Blöcken, depending on the sentence structure.

In use, Blöcken is most often encountered in contexts discussing multiple blocks and their location or movement. The singular and plural forms differ in their endings, and correct usage depends on the grammatical case and the presence of determiners. For adjectives preceding Blöcken or Blöcke, appropriate endings must be applied according to German declension rules, as in kleine Blöcke (small blocks) or mit kleinen Blöcken (with small blocks).

Beyond toys, the term also occurs in technical language when referring to grouped pieces or units, such as memory blocks or data blocks in computing, though in those contexts compound nouns or alternative pluralizations may occur. Blöcken thus illustrates German noun declension and the role of the dative plural in indicating indirect relationships between elements.