neutral zone

noun

plural neutral zones
1
American football : a space between the two lines of scrimmage equivalent to the length of the ball that may not be encroached upon by either team until the ball is put in play
2
ice hockey : the portion of a rink (see rink sense 1a) between the attacking and defensive zones
3
: a zone or area of shared ownership or administration
In fact, the Saudis and Kuwaitis aid the Iraqis … by selling Iraqi oil from the neutral zone, a favor that pumps more than $3 million a day into Iraqi coffers.Newsweek

Examples of neutral zone in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The Titans held a 14-13 lead late in the game when Vrabel instructed his Titans to purposefully take three penalties in a row — delay of game, false start, neutral zone infraction — which killed an additional minute of game clock thanks to a loophole in the rules. Chad Graff, The Athletic, 22 Jan. 2025 His neutral zone infraction on an Eagles 4th and 3 in Week 18 led to a Philly field goal and helped seal a 20-13 Giants loss that dropped them to 3-14 on the season and secured the No. 3 overall pick. Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 22 Jan. 2025 Bosa was called for neutral zone infractions on back-to-back plays. Daniel Popper, The Athletic, 8 Jan. 2025 His defensive zone coverages, breakouts and neutral zone play look different, but his overall philosophy hasn’t changed. Julian McKenzie, The Athletic, 28 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for neutral zone 

Word History

First Known Use

1838, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Time Traveler
The first known use of neutral zone was in 1838

Dictionary Entries Near neutral zone

Cite this Entry

“Neutral zone.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/neutral%20zone. Accessed 28 Jan. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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