Meanings
plural writer's blocks · plural writers' blocks
- uncountableusuallyThe (usually temporary) inability to begin or continue work on a piece of writing, especially creative writing.
1 more example
Laymen speak of ‘a writer’s block’ as if it were singular and are often encouraged in this fallacy by authors who are understandably reluctant to discuss something as personal as mental impotence. There are many kinds of writers’ blocks and probably as many reasons for blocks as there are reasons for writing, […]
1994, André Jute, “Writer’s Blues: breaching the blocks”, in Writing a Thriller, 2nd edition, London: A & C Black, →ISBN, page 89
Translations
Chinese Mandarin 作家一時文思不暢 /作家一时文思不畅, 腦閉塞 /脑闭塞
- 作家一時文思不暢 /作家一时文思不畅 (zuòjiā yìshí wénsī búchàng)the temporary inability to write
- 腦閉塞 /脑闭塞 (nǎobìsè)the temporary inability to write
- 江郎才盡 /江郎才尽 (jiānglángcáijìn)the temporary inability to write
Dutch schrijversblok
- schrijversblokthe temporary inability to write
Finnish valkoisen paperin kammo, tyhjän paperin kammo
- valkoisen paperin kammothe temporary inability to write
- tyhjän paperin kammothe temporary inability to write
- luomistuskathe temporary inability to write
French angoisse de la page blanche, syndrome de la page blanche
- angoisse de la page blanchethe temporary inability to write
- syndrome de la page blanchethe temporary inability to write
German Schreibblockade
- Schreibblockadethe temporary inability to write
Icelandic ritstífla
- ritstíflathe temporary inability to write
Japanese ライターズ・ブロック
- ライターズ・ブロック (raitāzu burokku)the temporary inability to write
Norwegian skrivesperre
- skrivesperrethe temporary inability to write
Polish blokada pisarska
- blokada pisarskathe temporary inability to write
Portuguese bloqueio de escritor, bloqueio criativo
- bloqueio de escritorthe temporary inability to write
- bloqueio criativothe temporary inability to write
Russian тво́рческий кри́зис, засто́й
- тво́рческий кри́зис (tvórčeskij krízis)the temporary inability to write
- засто́й (zastój)the temporary inability to write
Spanish quedarse en blanco, bloqueo del escritor
- quedarse en blancothe temporary inability to write
- bloqueo del escritorthe temporary inability to write
Swedish skrivkramp
- skrivkrampthe temporary inability to write
Cite this entry
writer's block. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/writer's%20block
“writer's block.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/writer's%20block. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “writer's block,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/writer's%20block.
Source: writer's block on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.