Block quotation is a specific way of dealing with a large bulk of text that (a) avoids paraphrase entirely (b) usually relies on attribution; and (c) requires source citation. A block quote is indented further into the text than the regular margins, and thus signals to its reader a full quotation.
Here's an example of a block quotation, which uses attribution language (“according to”), indents the entire text, and then concludes with a citation:
Bede's History should not be read simply as history, in spite of its title. According to Reginald Smith,
Bede’s intent in writing his Ecclesiastical History was not simply recitation or rehearsal of dates and events in early medieval English Christian history; it was to reveal the development of England as a Christian people. The conversion of the Anglo-Saxons was the catalyst for the transformation of disparate pagan tribes into the ecclesia, the gathered people of God, formed and united by a Christian faith.1
Your goal is not simply to copy-and-paste the words of others into your work. Only use block quotation if you feel you cannot paraphrase an author or want to preserve the exact wording of the original text. Remember, paraphrase is generally better as it shows you understand what you've read. Use block quotation sparingly and judiciously.