time zone

American  

noun

1. one of the 24 regions or divisions of the globe approximately coinciding with meridians at successive hours from the observatory at Greenwich, England.

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time zone British  

noun

1. a region throughout which the same standard time is used. There are 24 time zones in the world, demarcated approximately by meridians at 15° intervals, an hour apart See also zonetime

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time zone Scientific  

1. Any of the 24 divisions of the Earth's surface used to determine the local time for any given locality. Each zone is roughly 15° of longitude in width, with local variations for economic and political convenience. Local time is one hour ahead for each time zone as one travels east and one hour behind for each time zone as one travels west. The International Meridian Conference in 1884 established the prime meridian as the starting point for the 24 zones.

2. See more at International Date Line standard time

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Etymology

Origin of time zone

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

The note gave a deadline for payment of 17:00 on Thursday, he said, without specifying which time zone, and had a second deadline for Monday.

From BBC

Faced with higher taxes, why choose Seattle over San Francisco, which sits in the same time zone, has better weather, and hosts a vastly deeper pool of venture capital?

From The Wall Street Journal

Over nine months last year, the groups of artists met monthly on Zoom — “six countries and seven time zones,” says Rozental — along with therapists, scholars and others to plumb the topic.

From Los Angeles Times

Adjusting to earlier schedules, such as traveling east across time zones or working night shifts, requires the body clock to move forward.

From Science Daily

It gave a deadline for payment of 17:00 on Thursday, he said, without specifying which time zone, and had a second deadline for Monday.

From BBC