The Brick

Although it is tempting to refer to all LEGO pieces as bricks, it is more accurate to use this term only when talking about certain elements. The label brick is generally given to a type of LEGO part that is the same height as a standard 1x1 element, like the ones shown in Figure 1-6. A brick should have straight sides and a rectangular shape when you view it from the side.

A LEGO brick is not unlike a real brick that you might find making up the outside walls of a house, an apartment building, or a school. In some respects, the plastic versions are used much as you would use their clay or concrete counterparts. You can use them to create the walls of buildings, but you can also use them to create vehicles, cities, moats, airplanes, and so on.