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

Plans also call for community-serving amenities such as a café, wellness center and childcare at ground level. —Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Aug. 2025

Ozone at ground level is a pollutant caused by chemical reactions between emissions from cars, power plants and industrial factories, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. —Elise Schmelzer, Denver Post, 1 Aug. 2025

The 41-story project will feature 906 apartments, with almost 3,000 feet of ground level commercial space. —Jeffrey Steele, Forbes.com, 25 June 2025

Plants that overwintered in the garden can be cut back just above ground level in late winter to remove dead foliage. —Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 3 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1787, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ground level

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