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

Not the good, high-altitude ozone that shields us from dangerous UV light, but bad ozone, hovering right above ground level — stinking, brownish, grayish photochemical smog. —Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026

Santorini wines are distinct for their volcanic soil but also for the viticulture; vines are wound into a basket shape at ground level, which protects them from the island’s intense winds. —Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 23 Mar. 2026

The coalition noted that current atmospheric conditions — including marine layer inversions and low winds — may be trapping pollutants at ground level, worsening exposure for residents. —Walker Armstrong, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Mar. 2026

Meanwhile, more than half a dozen monthly records fell at ground level Friday. —Rick Hurd, Mercury News, 20 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1787, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ground level

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