zero-zero, adj. & n.

zero-zero
http://www.oed.com/dictionary/zero-zero_adj%3Ftab%3Dmeaning_and_use
Revised 2018

# zero-zeroadjective & noun

## Factsheet

### What does the word zero-zero mean?

There are five meanings listed in OED's entry for the word zero-zero. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

zero-zero has developed meanings and uses in subjects including

aviation (1930s) mathematics (1980s)

### How common is the word zero-zero?

About 0.02occurrences per million words in modern written English

1930 | 0.012
1940 | 0.011
1950 | 0.013
1960 | 0.014
1970 | 0.016
1980 | 0.016
1990 | 0.017
2000 | 0.018
2010 | 0.02

### How is the word zero-zero pronounced?

#### British English

/ˌzɪərəʊˈzɪərəʊ/
zeer-oh-ZEER-oh

#### U.S. English

/ˌzɪroʊˈzɪroʊ/
zeer-oh-ZEER-oh
/ˌziroʊˈziroʊ/
zeer-oh-ZEER-oh

### Where does the word zero-zero come from?

Earliest known use

1930s

The earliest known use of the word zero-zero is in the 1930s.

OED's earliest evidence for zero-zero is from 1930, in Greeley (Colorado) Daily Tribune.

zero-zero is formed within English, by compounding.

Etymons: zero n., zero n.

### Nearby entries

1. zero-rate, v. 1972–
2. zero-rated, adj. 1972–
3. zero rating, n. 1971–
4. zero sound, n. 1957–
5. zero-sum, adj. 1944–
6. zeroth, adj. 1850–
7. zero tillage, n. 1963–
8. zero tolerance, n. 1940–
9. zerovalent, adj. 1906–
10. zero waste, adj. & n. 1974–
11. zero-zero, adj. & n.1930–
12. zerumbet, n. 1640–
13. zest, n.¹ 1674–
14. zest, n.² 1706
15. zest, v. 1702–
16. zest, int. 1705–22
17. zester, n. 1963–
18. zestful, adj. 1797–
19. zestfully, adv. 1843–
20. zestiness, n. 1912–
21. zesty, adj. 1826–

## Etymology

### Summary

Formed within English, by compounding.
< zero n. + zero n.

## Meaning & use

1. adjective
   1. 1.
      Aeronautics.
      1. 1.a.
         1930–
         Of atmospheric conditions: characterized by or having both a zero cloud ceiling and zero (horizontal and vertical) visibility; (of a landing or other manoeuvre) carried out in such conditions. Also: designating visibility which is effectively zero in both horizontal and vertical directions.
         1. 1930

            > The Boeing radio station here stated that Caldwell was flying in ‘zero zero’ weather, meaning there was neither ceiling nor visibility, and Caldwell could not see the ground when he landed.

            Greeley (Colorado) Daily Tribune 16 October 1/3
         2. 1947

            > There are few greater nervous strains than that experienced by a pilot of a transport in deciding to switch over from instruments and manually bring the ship in these last few hundred feet when visibility is ‘zero-zero’.

            Shell Aviation News November 7/2
         3. 1967

            > Category 3C represents visibility of less than 50 metres and includes ‘zero-zero’ conditions under which safety experts believe operations will not be possible for a very long time.

            Times Review of Industry June 53/1
         4. 2002

            > This newest of Boeing 747s had the capability, and the trained crew, to make a zero-zero landing.

            H. L. Steele, Food Soldier ii. 77
         aviation
         1. blind 1889–
            Of a corner, summit, etc., in a road: at an angle or gradient such that the road immediately beyond is not visible.
         2. zero-zero 1930–
            Aeronautics. Of atmospheric conditions: characterized by or having both a zero cloud ceiling and zero (horizontal and vertical) visibility; (of a…
         View in Historical Thesaurus
      2. 1.b.
         1961–
         Designating an ejection seat that can eject a person safely even when the aircraft is on the ground and stationary (i.e. at zero altitude and zero velocity).
         1. 1961

            > The most interesting item in the Martin-Baker Aircraft Co., Ltd., display..is the prototype rocket-assisted ‘zero-zero’ ejection seat for VTOL aircraft.

            Aeroplane vol. 100 593/2
         2. 1977

            > They had explained to him the controls of his zero-zero ejection seat.

            P. Way, Super-Celeste 215
         3. 1996

            > A seat lofts a pilot from an aircraft at zero forward speed and zero altitude (the so-called zero-zero seat) to an altitude at which the parachute can deploy safely.

            New Scientist 21 September 89/3
         4. 2009

            > The unreliability of the T-40 engine and lack of an effective zero-zero ejection seat helped kill the turboprop ‘tail-sitter’.

            J. Winchester, World's Worst Aircraft (new edition) 22
         aviation
         1. zero-zero 1961–
            Aeronautics. Designating an ejection seat that can eject a person safely even when the aircraft is on the ground and stationary (i.e. at zero…
         View in Historical Thesaurus
   2. 2.
      1982–
      Designating a disarmament proposal for the total removal of certain types of weapons on both sides of a conflict or confrontation; spec. one put forward in the early 1980s for both the Soviet Union and the United States to remove all their medium-range nuclear missiles from Europe. Esp. in zero-zero option, zero-zero solution. Cf. zero option n.
      1. 1982

         > The zero-zero solution remains the best arms control result.

         Statement to Press in Public Papers Presidents U.S.: R. Reagan (1984) 1610/2
      2. 1996

         > The Soviets themselves also came around to..agreeing to the so-called zero-zero option on intermediate-range ballistic missiles.

         National Interest (Nexis) Summer
      3. 2015

         > The Soviets rejected Reagan's zero-zero option, which made the president all the more determined to deploy the Pershing IIs.

         J. Meacham, Destiny & Power xxv. 285
      mathematics
      1. unilateralist 1959–
         Of or pertaining to unilateral disarmament, or to unilateralists or their activities.
      2. multilateralist 1960–
         Of, relating to, or characteristic of multilateralism; multilateral.
      3. zero-zero 1982–
         Designating a disarmament proposal for the total removal of certain types of weapons on both sides of a conflict or confrontation; spec. one put…
      View in Historical Thesaurus
      1. zero-zero 1982–
         Designating a disarmament proposal for the total removal of certain types of weapons on both sides of a conflict or confrontation; spec. one put…
      View in Historical Thesaurus
      1. nuclear disarmament 1956–
         The process of reducing in number, or completely eliminating, a country's nuclear weapons.
      2. denuclearization 1959–
      3. zero-zero solution 1982–
         Designating a disarmament proposal for the total removal of certain types of weapons on both sides of a conflict or confrontation; spec. one put…
      4. build-down 1983–
         A systematic reduction of how many (nuclear) weapons are held in a nation's arsenal, typically achieved by destroying at least two weapons for…
      5. zero-zero option 1996–
         Designating a disarmament proposal for the total removal of certain types of weapons on both sides of a conflict or confrontation; spec. one put…
      View in Historical Thesaurus
2. noun
   1. 1.
      1939–
      Aeronautics. Atmospheric conditions in which both the (horizontal and vertical) visibility and the cloud ceiling are effectively zero. Cf. sense A.1a.
      1. 1939

         > Zero-zero (no visibility in any direction).

         J. C. Hixson & I. Colodny, Word Ways xvi. 141
      2. 1949

         > When the visibility gets shorter than three miles, it means a quick shift to zero-zero is possible.

         Skyways August 51/1
      3. 1975

         > There is no minimum forecast for a destination—it can call for zero-zero all day.

         Flying October 34/1
      4. 2003

         > Landing in zero-zero is rarely attempted if there's wind and/or ice involved.

         M. Danford, Juneau, this is Echo 3 iv. 16
      aviation
      1. zero-zero 1939–
         Aeronautics. Atmospheric conditions in which both the (horizontal and vertical) visibility and the cloud ceiling are effectively zero. Cf. sense A.1a.
      View in Historical Thesaurus
   2. 2.
      1986–
      A zero-zero disarmament proposal or option. See sense A.2.
      1. 1986

         > At least four important shifts were signalled by Gorbachov during the summit... His opening bid had been to offer zero-zero in Europe, combined with a freeze at existing levels in Asia.

         Observer 19 October 10/3
      2. 2015

         > The responses diverged, beginning with Secretary of State Alexander Haig, a former NATO Supreme Commander and opponent of zero-zero.

         S. F. Kraemer, Inside Cold War xi. 246
      mathematics
      1. zero-zero 1986–
         A zero-zero disarmament proposal or option. See sense A.2.
      View in Historical Thesaurus

## Pronunciation

### British English

/ˌzɪərəʊˈzɪərəʊ/
zeer-oh-ZEER-oh

### U.S. English

/ˌzɪroʊˈzɪroʊ/
zeer-oh-ZEER-oh
/ˌziroʊˈziroʊ/
zeer-oh-ZEER-oh

####

##### Consonants

- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- ɬrhingyll
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing

Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence /ˈpɛtl/ but /ˈpɛtl̩i/.

##### Vowels

- iːfleece
- ihappy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- atrap, bath
- ɑːstart, palm, bath
- ɒlot
- ɔːthought, force
- ʌstrut
- ʊfoot
- uːgoose
- əletter
- əːnurse
- ɪənear
- ɛːsquare
- ʊəcure
- eɪface
- ʌɪpride
- aʊmouth
- əʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ãgratin
- ɒ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)

##### Other symbols

- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.

View the pronunciation model here.

####

##### Consonants

- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye*
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing

* /d/ also represents a 'tapped' /t/ as in

Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence /ˈpɛd(ə)l/ but /ˈpɛdl̩i/.

##### Vowels

- ifleece, happy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- ætrap, bath
- ɑlot, palm, cloth, thought
- ɑrstart
- ɔcloth, thought
- ɔrnorth, force
- ʊfoot
- ugoose
- əstrut, comma
- ərnurse, letter
- ɪ(ə)rnear
- ɛ(ə)rsquare
- ʊ(ə)rcure
- eɪface
- aɪpride
- aʊmouth
- oʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ɑ̃gratin
- æ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)

##### Other symbols

- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.

View the pronunciation model here.

####

Simple text respell breaks words into syllables, separated by a hyphen. The syllable which carries the primary stress is written in capital letters. This key covers both British and U.S. English Simple Text Respell.

##### Consonants

b, d, f, h, k, l, m, n, p, r, s, t, v, w and z have their standard English values

- gguy
- jjay
- yyore
- chchore
- khloch
- shshore
- ththaw
- dhthee
- zhbeige

##### Vowels

- atrap
- ahpalm
- airsquare
- arstart
- arrcarry (British only)
- awthought
- ayface
- a(ng)gratin
- edress
- eefleece
- eerdeer
- errmerry
- ikit
- ighpride
- irrmirror
- olot (British only)
- ohgoat
- oogoose
- oorcure
- orforce
- orrsorry (British only)
- owmouth
- oyvoice
- o(ng)salon
- ustrut
- uhletter
- urnurse
- urrhurry
- uufoot

## Frequency

zero-zero typically occurs about 0.02 times per million words in modern written English.

zero-zero is in frequency band 3, which contains words occurring between 0.01 and 0.1 times per million words in modern written English. More about OED's frequency bands

Frequency data is computed programmatically, and should be regarded as an estimate.

### Frequency of zero-zero, adj. & n., 1930–2010

* Occurrences per million words in written English

Historical frequency series are derived from Google Books Ngrams (version 2), a data set based on the Google Books corpus of several million books printed in English between 1500 and 2010.

The overall frequency for a given word is calculated by summing frequencies for the main form of the word, any plural or inflected forms, and any major spelling variations.

For sets of homographs (distinct entries that share the same word-form, e.g. mole, n.¹, mole, n.², mole, n.³, etc.), we have estimated the frequency of each homograph entry as a fraction of the total Ngrams frequency for the word-form. This may result in inaccuracies.

Smoothing has been applied to series for lower-frequency words, using a moving-average algorithm. This reduces short-term fluctuations, which may be produced by variability in the content of the Google Books corpus.

Decade | Frequency per million words
--- | ---
1930 | 0.012
1940 | 0.011
1950 | 0.013
1960 | 0.014
1970 | 0.016
1980 | 0.016
1990 | 0.017
2000 | 0.018
2010 | 0.02

### Frequency of zero-zero, adj. & n., 2017–2024

* Occurrences per million words in written English

Modern frequency series are derived from a corpus of 20 billion words, covering the period from 2017 to the present. The corpus is mainly compiled from online news sources, and covers all major varieties of World English.

Smoothing has been applied to series for lower-frequency words, using a moving-average algorithm. This reduces short-term fluctuations, which may be produced by variability in the content of the corpus.

Period | Frequency per million words
--- | ---
2017 | 0.0087
2018 | 0.0077
2019 | 0.0072
2020 | 0.0065
2021 | 0.0076
2022 | 0.0081
2023 | 0.0089
2024 | 0.01

Originally published as part of the entry for zero, n. & adj.

zero-zero, adj. & n. was revised in June 2018.

zero-zero, adj. & n. was last modified in July 2023.