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

Indy’s eyeline is only 19 inches off the ground, so that frequently meant the camera was at ground level or just above it. —Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 9 Oct. 2025

One cabaña is on ground level and the rest are reached by stairs. —Sarah Buder, AFAR Media, 8 Oct. 2025

Enormous glowing planets hung overhead; others were installed at ground level, punctuating the venue’s gleaming black floor. —Fiona Sinclair Scott, CNN Money, 7 Oct. 2025

Into the Gorge tours take spectators to ground level, and whitewater rafting trips get them on the water, directly beneath the bridge. —Taryn Shorr-McKee, Travel + Leisure, 7 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1787, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ground level

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