Where does “ground zero” come from?
ground zero (English) comes from English zero, from Middle French zero, from Italian Zero, from New Latin zerum, from Medieval Latin zephirum, from Arabic صِفْر, from Sanskrit शून्य, from Proto-Indo-European ḱówH-.
ground zero (English): Originally, the point on the land or water surface below which a nuclear bomb detonates in the air; now also the point on such a surface at or above the detonation
Definitions
- Originally, the point on the land or water surface below which a nuclear bomb detonates in the air; now also the point on such a surface at or above the detonation
Ancestry of “ground zero”, step by step
ground zero traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English zero
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | zero | The cardinal number occurring before one and that... |
| 2 | Middle French | zero | — |
| 3 | Italian | Zero | zero |
| 4 | New Latin | zerum | — |
| 5 | Medieval Latin | zephirum | zero |
| 6 | Arabic | صِفْر | zero, nothing, empty, void; nothing, cipher;... |
| 7 | Sanskrit | शून्य | zero; cipher, cypher; blank, deserted |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱówH- | — |
via English ground
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | ground | The surface of the Earth, as opposed to the sky... |
| 2 | Middle English | ground | ground; Earth |
| 3 | Old English | grund | ground; bottom, foundation; abyss, depths |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | grunduz | ground, foundation |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | gʰrem- | to be angry; to sound, bellow, growl, roar, be... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | gʰer- | to rub; to stroke; to grind |