ground level

noun

plural ground levels

1

a

: the level of the ground taken as a reference point

From ground level, the arrayed fields of feed corn and soybeans look … like sprint tracks or Olympic pools, replete with the angles and alleys of serious tennis.

—David Foster Wallace

These survey flights were conducted at 300 feet above ground level. During the return flight to Schefferville, the aircraft descended and flew over terrain at an altitude varying between 100 and 40 feet above ground level.

—Targeted New Service

compare sea level

b

: the story (see story entry 3 sense 1a) of a building with its floor aligned to ground level : ground floor sense 1

It was a two-story house with white siding on the ground level …

—Neil Sheehan

2

: the state of a physical system (as of an atomic nucleus or an atom) having the least energy of all the possible states : ground state

Examples of ground level in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Cut Back Foliage Using sharp hand pruners, cut the plant back to ground level. —Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 Sep. 2025

Operational CFOs act as internal efficiency consultants, constantly fine-tuning how businesses function at ground level. —Jack McCullough, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025

But at ground level, this experience of getting punched in the mouth in Week 1 could ultimately be beneficial. —Jim Alexander, Oc Register, 31 Aug. 2025

While car engines emit pollution at ground level, lightning injects gases high above Earth. —Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1787, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ground level

• daredevil
• sublevel
• bevel
• devil
• mediaeval
• multilevel