zero-line, n.

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

# zero-linenoun

## Factsheet

### What does the noun zero-line mean?

There is one meaning in OED's entry for the noun zero-line. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.

### How common is the noun zero-line?

Fewer than 0.01occurrences per million words in modern written English

1840 | 0.0045
1850 | 0.0062
1860 | 0.0078
1870 | 0.0088
1880 | 0.0098
1890 | 0.013
1900 | 0.013
1910 | 0.014
1920 | 0.014
1930 | 0.013
1940 | 0.012
1950 | 0.011
1960 | 0.0084
1970 | 0.0081
1980 | 0.007
1990 | 0.0057
2000 | 0.0051
2010 | 0.0052

### Where does the noun zero-line come from?

Earliest known use

1830s

The earliest known use of the noun zero-line is in the 1830s.

OED's earliest evidence for zero-line is from 1834, in Mem. Royal Astron. Society.

### Nearby entries

1. zero gravity, n. & adj. 1915–
2. zero-graze, v. 1954–
3. zero-grazed, adj. 1958–
4. zero grazing, n. 1954–
5. zero growth, n. 1907–
6. zero hour, n. 1915–
7. zero-hours, adj. 1988–
8. zeroing, n. 1906–
9. zeroize, v. 1894–
10. zero-length, adj. 1945–
11. zero-line, n.1834–
12. zero magnet, n. 1890–
13. zero mark, n. 1821–
14. zero meridian, n. 1849–
15. zero norm, n. 1966–
16. zero option, n. 1976–
17. zero-order, adj. 1919–
18. zero plane, n. 1842–
19. zero point, n. 1789–
20. zero-point energy, n. 1913–
21. zero population growth, n. 1955–

## Meaning & use

1. 1834–
   A line represented by 0 on a scale or instrument, used as the basis for taking measurements; (also) a value from which a positive or negative quantity is reckoned, a baseline. cf. zero n. A.4a, zero n. A.4b.
   1. 1834

      > Its zero line should be a continuation of the inner edge of such bar, when viewed through the telescope.

      Mem. Royal Astron. Society vol. 7 14
   2. 1915

      > The horizontal or zero line, which crosses the hinder and lower angles of the right and left parietal bones.

      A. Keith, Antiquity of Man xxi. 341
   3. 2010

      > When the bars cross below the zero line from above and continue falling below it, this is generally a strong indication of bearish price momentum.

      J. Chen, Essent. Technical Anal. Financial Markets xiv. 253
   measurement
   1. zero 1761–
      A point or line represented by 0 on an instrument or device, used as the basis for taking measurements.
   2. zero-line 1834–
      A line represented by 0 on a scale or instrument, used as the basis for taking measurements; (also) a value from which a positive or negative…
   3. auto-zero 1936–
      A facility by which a zero is automatically produced, esp. in an instrument reading or an input.
   View in Historical Thesaurus

## Frequency

zero-line typically occurs fewer than 0.01 times per million words in modern written English.

zero-line is in frequency band 2, which contains words occurring between 0.001 and 0.01 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-line, n., 1840–2010

* 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
--- | ---
1840 | 0.0045
1850 | 0.0062
1860 | 0.0078
1870 | 0.0088
1880 | 0.0098
1890 | 0.013
1900 | 0.013
1910 | 0.014
1920 | 0.014
1930 | 0.013
1940 | 0.012
1950 | 0.011
1960 | 0.0084
1970 | 0.0081
1980 | 0.007
1990 | 0.0057
2000 | 0.0051
2010 | 0.0052

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

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