ground zero

noun

1

: the point directly above, below, or at which an explosion and especially a nuclear explosion occurs

2

: the center or origin of rapid, intense, or violent activity or change

Mingo Junction … sits at ground zero of the longest steelworker strike in American history.

—Michael Janofsky

broadly : center sense 2a

… the party town that served as ground zero for those corporate … bashes.

—Rich Eisen

3

: the very beginning : square one

We'll have to go back to ground zero and start over.

Synonyms of ground zero

• center
• capital
• hub
• mecca
• focus
• base
• nucleus
• core
• seat
• nerve center
• heart

Examples of ground zero in a Sentence

ground zero in the battle over immigration laws

a city that was once ground zero for the insurance industry

Recent Examples on the Web

The country has become ground zero for the global Islamist terror threat. —Paul Tilsley, FOXNews.com, 12 Apr. 2026

In the original state of nature, ground zero of social contract theory, a group of people would come together to decide on the principles that would permit them to live together in an orderly community. —George G. Szpiro, Big Think, 9 Apr. 2026

Borough officials call that spot ground zero for extreme erosion, after major chunks of the beach were wiped away. —Sean Tallant, CBS News, 7 Apr. 2026

This was peak space-race America, and Houston was ground zero, with NASA’s Johnson Space Center miles away. —Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1946, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ground zero

• nonzero
• subzero
• biro
• spiro
• superhero

Kids Definition

ground zero

noun

1

: the site of a nuclear explosion

2

: the center of rapid, intense, or violent activity or change

3

: the very beginning : square one