neutral zone

noun

plural neutral zones

1

American football : a space between the two lines of scrimmage equivalent to the length of the ball that may not be encroached upon by either team until the ball is put in play

2

ice hockey : the portion of a rink (see rink sense 1a) between the attacking and defensive zones

3

: a zone or area of shared ownership or administration

In fact, the Saudis and Kuwaitis aid the Iraqis … by selling Iraqi oil from the neutral zone, a favor that pumps more than $3 million a day into Iraqi coffers.

—Newsweek

Examples of neutral zone in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

His teammates have noticed his progression offensively, while still committing to being solid in the defensive and neutral zones. —Julian McKenzie, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025

Nik Bonitto offsides, lined up in neutral zone on punt, gives Chargers a first down. —Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 21 Sep. 2025

But after the Devils got one back on Matyas Melovsky’s second goal of the game, Locmelis took a bad neutral zone penalty with seconds left in the second period and, early in the third, Nathan LeCompte beat Bruin goalie Ben Hrebik to tie it at 4-4. —Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 14 Sep. 2025

Johnson was flagged for a neutral zone violation, however, and the TD was waved off. —Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1838, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Rhymes for neutral zone

• acetone
• anglophone
• baritone
• bourguignon
• buspirone
• chaperon
• chaperone
• cobblestone
• collarbone
• cornerstone
• cortisone
• dictaphone