English
Alternative forms
Verb
knock someone's block off
- (idiomatic) To strike a person in the head, causing him to fall to the ground, especially in an unconscious condition; to beat up a person.
- 1895 Feb. 12, "Ring Gossip," Providence News (USA), p. 6 (retrieved 6 July 2011):
- "I can't stand the sight of him," he would say, "and I'd be glad if somebody would come along and knock his block off—when he was not in the ring."
- 1941 June 23, "People," Time:
- An airport cab starter threatened to knock Fiorello H. LaGuardia's block off when the New York Mayor parked his car across the taxi line.
- 1957 Jan. 25, "Guard Chief Irked," Rock Hill Herald (USA), p. 4 (retrieved 6 July 2011):
- "If anyone wants to call a guardsman a draft dodger, tell him to stand in front of me and say it and I'll knock his block off," Gen. Fluck said.
- 2008 Feb. 23, James Barron, "Man Departs a Life Lived on the Fringes of Fame ," New York Times (retrieved 6 July 2011):
- Mr. Gottfried said Miller announced, “I'm going to knock your block off”— and punched Mr. Jones, who was thrown against a buffet table.
See also