Rez-de-chaussée
Rez-de-chaussée , noun
[French, lit., level of the street. See Raze, transitive verb, and Causey.]
(Architecture) The ground story of a building, either on a level with the street or raised slightly above it; -- said esp. of buildings on the continent of Europe.
Tier above tier of neat apartments rise over the little shops which form the rez-de-chaussée.
Also: Rez-de-chaussee