zone

American  

[zohn] / zoʊn /

noun

• zones
  plural

1. any continuous area that differs in some respect, or is distinguished for some purpose, from adjoining areas, or within which certain distinctive circumstances exist or are established: The temperature lies outside the danger zone.

   The decisions were formulated in a zone of uncertainty.

   The temperature lies outside the danger zone.

   Synonyms:

   region

2. Geography. any of five great divisions of the earth's surface, bounded by lines parallel to the equator and named according to the prevailing temperature.

3. Biogeography. an area characterized by a particular set of organisms, whose presence is determined by environmental conditions, as an altitudinal belt on a mountain.

4. Geology. a horizon.

5. Geometry. a part of the surface of a sphere included between two parallel planes.

6. a specific district, area, etc., within which a uniform charge is made for transportation, mail delivery, or other service.

7. the total number of available railroad terminals within a given circumference around a given shipping center.

8. an area or district in a city or town under special restrictions as to the type, size, purpose, etc., of existing or proposed buildings.

9. time zone.

10. Also called postal delivery zone. (in the U.S. postal system) any of the numbered districts into which a city or metropolitan area was formerly divided for expediting the sorting and delivery of mail.

11. Sports. a particular portion of a playing area.

    The wing was trapped with the puck in his own defensive zone.

12. Informal. the zone, a state of intense concentration and focus that greatly improves a person's performance in a physical or mental activity, especially in sports.

    He has a great golf swing, but he needs to be in the zone.

13. Archaic. a girdle or belt; cincture.

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verb (used with object)

• zones,
  present (3rd person singular)
• zoned,
  past participle,  past
• zoning
  present participle

1. to mark with zones or bands.

2. to divide into zones, tracts, areas, etc., as according to existing characteristics or as distinguished for some purpose.

3. to divide (a city, town, neighborhood, etc.) into areas subject to special restrictions on any existing or proposed buildings.

4. to encircle or surround with a zone, girdle, belt, or the like.

   Synonyms:

   band, gird

verb (used without object)

• zones,
  present (3rd person singular)
• zoned,
  past participle,  past
• zoning
  present participle

1. to be formed into zones.

verb phrase

1. zone out to become inattentive or dazed.

   I must have zoned out toward the end of the lecture.

zone British  

/ zəʊn /

noun

1. a region, area, or section characterized by some distinctive feature or quality

2. a sphere of thought, disagreement, argument, etc

3. an area subject to a particular political, military, or government function, use, or jurisdiction

   a demilitarized zone

4. (often capital) geography one of the divisions of the earth's surface, esp divided into latitudinal belts according to temperature See Torrid Zone Frigid Zone Temperate Zone

5. geology a distinctive layer or region of rock, characterized by particular fossils ( zone fossils ), metamorphism, structural deformity, etc

6. ecology an area, esp a belt of land, having a particular flora and fauna determined by the prevailing environmental conditions

7. maths a portion of a sphere between two parallel planes intersecting the sphere

8. sport

   1. a mental state that enables a competitor to perform to the best of his or her ability

      Hingis is in the zone at the moment

   2. (modifier) of or relating to competitive performance that depends on the mood or state of mind of the participant

      a zone player

9. archaic a girdle or belt

10. a section on a transport route; fare stage

11. a catchment area for pupils for a specific school

12. See zone

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verb

1. to divide into zones, as for different use, jurisdiction, activities, etc

2. to designate as a zone

3. to mark with or divide into zones

4. to establish (an area) as a zone for a specific school

zone Scientific  

/ zōn /

1. Any of the five regions of the surface of the Earth that are loosely divided according to prevailing climate and latitude, including the Torrid Zone, the North and South Temperate zones, and the North and South Frigid zones.

2. Ecology An area characterized by distinct physical conditions and populated by communities of certain kinds of organisms.

3. Mathematics A portion of a sphere bounded by the intersections of two parallel planes with the sphere.

4. Anatomy An area or a region distinguished from adjacent parts by a distinctive feature or characteristic.

5. Geology A region or stratum distinguished by composition or content.

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Synonym Usage

See belt .

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• interzone
  noun
• zoning
  noun
• miszone
  verb
• unzone
  verb (used with object)
• zoneless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• zones
  plural

Participles

• zoning
  present
• zoned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• zone
  simple
• zones
  simple
• have zoned
  perfect
• has zoned
  perfect
• am zoning
  progressive
• are zoning
  progressive
• is zoning
  progressive
• have been zoning
  perfect progressive
• has been zoning
  perfect progressive

Past

• zoned
  simple
• had zoned
  perfect
• was zoning
  progressive
• were zoning
  progressive
• had been zoning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will zone
  simple
• will have zoned
  perfect
• will be zoning
  progressive
• will have been zoning
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of zone

First recorded in 1490–1500; from Latin zōna, from Greek zṓnē “belt”

Explanation

A zone is an area that has some special characteristic, like a loading zone. "The Twilight Zone" was a TV show where odd things happened. Similarly, any zone is a place that has some special feature. A loading zone is a spot where cars and trucks can unload things and people. A military zone is a place under control of the armed forces. To create a zone is called zoning: zoning breaks something into parts or sections. An election board zones an area into separate zones such as districts.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

zone zones zoned zoning

"The recent hiring trend has settled into that not-too-hot, not-too-cold Goldilocks porridge zone of roughly 40,000 to 60,000 jobs a month," wrote Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management.

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

Asked if he was conscious that after catching passes in space at 33, he might not get to a faraway end zone as quickly as he did in his 20s, Adams had a good-natured response.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

Unable to see the area through the tall grass, Luce looked at the map on his smartphone to find a suitable landing zone for a medevac helicopter.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026

Bluetongue was first detected on farms in south-west Scotland in August and there have now been more than 100 infected animals in 41 locations, including four outside the original restriction zone .

From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026

Both matches took minutes, yet, seeing, I was in a zone where time slowed.

From "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

As the city moves to ban wells and new state laws require buffer zones and plugging idle wells, “the relationship between residential communities and oil drilling operators has been reset,” she wrote.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

Blanc said construction that borders those flood zones also needs a different approach.

From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026

The zones of economic power and influence in prior generations was closely tied to the widespread diffusion of leading technological innovations of the day, including telecommunications and electrification.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026

My family would be the other journalists embedded with me in military zones.

From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026

Germany warned citizens of neutral countries not to board ships going into war zones.

From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman

Occasional experiences of “mindless eating” or “dissociative eating” are human; most of us have zoned out with a bag of chips at one point or another.

From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026

While she has a reputation for being fiercely zoned into her training rather than chasing the spotlight, she has put work into the promotion.

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

While Bratenahl families are zoned for the Cleveland Metropolitan School District, many buyers elect to send their children to nearby private institutions, including Hathaway Brown School and Hawken School.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

Under the ordinance, developers can now build up to four-story buildings with up to 16 units on lots that were previously zoned for single-family homes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026

“Yeah—um—yes,” Dad stammered, still sort of zoned out.

From "As Brave As You" by Jason Reynolds

Individual projects still would require zoning reviews, so no need to worry about skyscrapers coming to Silver Lake.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

Airbnb’s housing initiative also will support advocacy efforts aimed at changing regulations around zoning, permitting and building codes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

There are many good reasons you may not be allowed to have two homes with two separate postal addresses under local zoning rules.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 8, 2026

“It has increased in value because of zoning and because of time.”

From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026

“Just tell your dad,” he said, “that I’ve already submitted his zoning violation to the Community Council meeting.”

From "Dead End in Norvelt" by Jack Gantos

Related Words

• area
• belt
• ground
• region
• section
• sector
• territory