year zero

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noun

the beginning (1975) of the period during which Cambodia was under the control of the Khmer Rouge

the beginning of revolutionary change

the beginning of any new system or regime

QUIZZES

QUIZ YOURSELF ON PARENTHESES AND BRACKETS APLENTY!

Set some time apart to test your bracket symbol knowledge, and see if you can keep your parentheses, squares, curlies, and angles all straight!

Question 1 of 7

Let’s start with some etymology: What are the origins of the typographical word “bracket”?

First appeared around 1750, and is related to the French word “braguette” for the name of codpiece armor.

First appeared in 1610, based on the French word “baguette” for the long loaf of bread.

First appeared in 1555, and is related to the French word “raquette” for a netted bat.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Word Origin for year zero

C20: by analogy with Year One of the French Revolutionary calendar

Words nearby year zero

Year of Confusion, year of grace, year-round, year-rounder, year's mind, year zero, yeasayer, yeast, yeast cake, yeast nucleic acid, yeasty

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example sentences from the Web for year zero

However, more than 20 players on the ballot this year were probably worthy of being enshrined in Cooperstown.
Conservative Curt Says His Politics, Not His Pitching, Kept Him Out of the Hall of Fame|Ben Jacobs|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The influential al Qaeda propagandist, who was born in New Mexico, died in a U.S. drone strike later that year.
France Kills Charlie Hebdo Murderers|Nico Hines|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Eric Garcetti succeeded Villaraigosa and has received high marks in his first year and a half on the job.
The Golden State Preps for the ‘Red Wedding’ of Senate Races|David Freedlander|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Grindr introduced the feature themselves in October the same year and called it ‘tribes.’
Grindr’s Trans Dating Problem|David Levesley|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST

In the last year, her fusion exercise class has attracted a cult following and become de rigueur among the celebrity set.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
In the year of misery, of agony and suffering in general he had endured, he had settled upon one theory.
The Homesteader|Oscar Micheaux
The great plague of this and the subsequent year broke out at St. Giles, London.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
Twice a year the formal invitation was sent out by the old nobleman to his only son, and to his two nephews.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
After about the forty-fifth year it becomes gradually less; after seventy-five years it is about one-half the amount given.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd
The clink of the stone-masons' chisels had resounded year after year from morning till night.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills

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