Word Study
zero
CIDE DICTIONARY
zero, n. [F. zéro, from Ar. , , empty, a cipher. Cf. Cipher.].
- A cipher; nothing; naught. [1913 Webster]
- The point from which the graduation of a scale, as of a thermometer, commences. [1913 Webster]" Zero in the Centigrade, or Celsius thermometer, and in the Réaumur thermometer, is at the point at which water congeals. The zero of the Fahrenheit thermometer is fixed at the point at which the mercury stands when immersed in a mixture of snow and common salt. In Wedgwood's pyrometer, the zero corresponds with 1077° on the Fahrenheit scale. See Illust. of
Thermometer ." [1913 Webster] - Fig.: The lowest point; the point of exhaustion; as, his patience had nearly reached zero. [1913 Webster]
OXFORD DICTIONARY
zero, n. & v.
--n. (pl. -os)
1 a the figure 0; nought. b no quantity or number; nil.
2 a point on the scale of an instrument from which a positive or negative quantity is reckoned.
3 (attrib.) having a value of zero; no, not any (zero population growth).
4 (in full zero-hour) a the hour at which a planned, esp. military, operation is timed to begin. b a crucial moment.
5 the lowest point; a nullity or nonentity.
--v.tr. (-oes, -oed)
1 adjust (an instrument etc.) to zero point.
2 set the sights of (a gun) for firing.
--n. (pl. -os)
1 a the figure 0; nought. b no quantity or number; nil.
2 a point on the scale of an instrument from which a positive or negative quantity is reckoned.
3 (attrib.) having a value of zero; no, not any (zero population growth).
4 (in full zero-hour) a the hour at which a planned, esp. military, operation is timed to begin. b a crucial moment.
5 the lowest point; a nullity or nonentity.
--v.tr. (-oes, -oed)
1 adjust (an instrument etc.) to zero point.
2 set the sights of (a gun) for firing.
Idiom
zero in on 1 take aim at.
2 focus one's attention on. zero option a disarmament proposal for the total removal of certain types of weapons on both sides. zero-rated on which no value added tax is charged. zero-sum (of a game, political situation, etc.) in which whatever is gained by one side is lost by the other so that the net change is always zero.
2 focus one's attention on. zero option a disarmament proposal for the total removal of certain types of weapons on both sides. zero-rated on which no value added tax is charged. zero-sum (of a game, political situation, etc.) in which whatever is gained by one side is lost by the other so that the net change is always zero.
Etymology
F z{eacute}ro or It. zero f. OSp. f. Arab. sifr CIPHER
THESAURUS
zero
absolute zero, aught, blank, boiling point, cipher, concentrate on, dew point, duck, dud, dummy, fix on, focus on, freezing point, goose egg, hollow man, home in on, insignificancy, jackstraw, lay figure, man of straw, melting point, nada, nadir, naught, nebbish, nichts, nihil, nil, nix, no such thing, nobody, nonentity, nothing, nothing at all, nothing on earth, nothing whatever, nought, null, nullity, pinpoint, puppet, pushover, recalescence point, rock bottom, temperature, thing of naught, trifle, void, whiffet, whippersnapper, zero in on, zilchROGET THESAURUS
zero
Unsubstantiality
N unsubstantiality, insubstantiality, nothingness, nihility, no degree, no part, no quantity, no thing, nothing, naught, nil, nullity, zero, cipher, no one, nobody, never a one, ne'er a one, no such thing, none in the world, nothing whatever, nothing at all, nothing on earth, not a particle, all talk, moonshine, stuff and nonsense, matter of no importance, matter of no consequence, thing of naught, man of straw, John Doe and Richard Roe, faggot voter, nominis umbra, nonentity, flash in the pan, vox et praeterea nihil, shadow, phantom, dream, ignis fatuus, such stuff as dreams are made of, air, thin air, vapor, bubble, baseless fabric of a vision, mockery, hollowness, blank, void, inanity, fool's paradise, unsubstantial, baseless, groundless, ungrounded, without foundation, having no foundation, visionary, immaterial, spectral, dreamy, shadowy, ethereal, airy, cloud built, cloud formed, gossamery, illusory, insubstantial, unreal, vacant, vacuous, empty, eviscerated, blank, hollow, nominal, null, inane, there's nothing in it, an ocean of dreams without a sound.Zero
N zero, nothing, null, nul, naught, nought, void, cipher, goose egg, none, nobody, no one, nichts, nixie, nix, zilch, zip, zippo, not a soul, ame qui vive, absence, unsubstantiality, not one, not a one, not any, nary a one, not a, never a, not a whit of, not an iota of, not a drop of, not a speck of, not a jot, not a trace of, not a hint of, not a smidgen of, not a suspicion of, not a shadow of, neither hide nor hair of.For further exploring for "zero" in Webster Dictionary Online
