ground zero

noun

1. the point on the surface of the earth or water directly below, directly above, or at which an atomic or hydrogen bomb explodes.

2. (sometimes initial capital letters),  the site of the former World Trade Center in New York City, destroyed in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

3. Informal.,  the very beginning or most elementary level.

   Some of the students are starting from ground zero.

ground zero

noun

1. a point on the surface of land or water at or directly above or below the centre of a nuclear explosion

2. a scene of great devastation

3. (sometimes capitals) the name given to the devastated site of the collapsed World Trade Center towers in New York after September 11 2001

Word History and Origins

Origin of ground zero¹

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

Elizabeth Taylor and Burton were ground zero of what we see today.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

A thirty-four-year-old physicist named Andrei Sakharov stood with scientists and Soviet officials on an outdoor platform about forty miles from ground zero.

Read more on Literature

Jamaica's Prime Minister Andrew Holness has described Black River as "ground zero" after sharing footage of the destruction there.

Read more on BBC

Academics, educators and critics alike refer to Oklahoma as ground zero for pushing education to the right.

Read more on Salon

For Elon Musk, ground zero of the AI arms race is a 114-acre tract of grass and swamp on the state line of Tennessee and Mississippi.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• ambition 
• aspiration 
• intention 
• purpose 
• target