What is a city block?

Question

From what I read, "la manzana" can mean a city block in Spain. My Spanish speaking friends in the US use the word "la cuadra" to describe a city block. Does anyone know what they use in South America. "la manzana" or "la cuadra" or both, or something else altogether?

Answer 1

• In Colombia the word "manzana" is used for the whole block withing the 4 corners. (Or 3 or 5, depending in the number of corners the block has) I.E. ¡Ve y dale la vuelta a la manzana! = Go run around the block!

• "Cuadra" is just the length of the street from one corner to the next, on both sides of the street. So, it is also 4 corners, but two corners from one block facing the other two corners of another block. I.E. ¡Mis amigos de la cuadra! = My friends that live in the houses along my house and those who live across the street in front of our houses.

Your post is interesting. As a real estate developer I use the word block for both. - gringojrf, Mar 7, 2012

Interesting! In Colombia a "manzana" is a closed shape, a "cuadra" is the straight 2 parallel sides of two facing blocks! - farallon7, Mar 7, 2012

Answer 2

I'm with him. A manzana is the block in 3d, with all it contains. A cuadra is a a block in 2d, the length or such. Interestingly, in Costa Rica a block is called 100 metres irrespective of how long it is, i.e. 500 metres means 5 blocks, not that you have to walk 1/2 a kilometre to cover the distance...

*of - afowen, Mar 7, 2012

Once in Costa Rica I asked how far it was to a waterfall and was told 2 kilometros it was actually more like 8. We knocked on doors to get a taxi to come get us to take us home. - gringojrf, Mar 7, 2012

That would be 80 blocks then... - afowen, Mar 7, 2012

Answer 3

Hi and welcome to the forum.

In my experience (Mexico, Colombia, and Guatemala) the word "cuadra" is used.

I hear 'cuadra' in MX as well. - NikkiLR, Mar 7, 2012

Answer 4

cuadra