John Buchan
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Reaching the Zenith
When you reach the zenith, you're at the top, the pinnacle, the summit, the peak. Zenith developed from an Arabic phrase meaning "the way over one's head," and then traveled through Old Spanish, Medieval Latin, and Middle French before arriving in English. As long ago as the 1300s, English speakers used zenith to name the highest point in the celestial heavens, directly overhead. By the 1600s, zenith was being used for other high points as well. The celestial term is often contrasted with nadir, which refers to the point that is vertically downward from the observer (imagine a line going through the Earth from the observer's feet and out the other side into the sky). Figuratively, nadir simply means "the lowest point."
Examples of zenith in a Sentence
Jordan Kisner, The Atlantic, 4 Apr. 2025
Simon Fisher-Becker, who reached a career zenith in the original Harry Potter film and Doctor Who on television, died on Sunday, March 9.
—Marc Berman, Forbes, 10 Mar. 2025
Having pitched their idea to Marvel and DC — then the zenith of all things comics — Eastman and Laird were left disillusioned by the business of mainstream publishing.
—Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 31 Dec. 2024
As the solar cycle reaches its zenith, solar flares, solar system's largest explosive events, increase, causing phenomenon such as May's solar storm, the largest observed by NASA in decades.
—Max Hauptman, USA TODAY, 17 Oct. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Zenith.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/zenith. Accessed 18 Apr. 2025.
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zenith
noun
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