crossfire

English

Etymology

From cross- +‎ fire.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈkɹɒsfaɪə/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈkɹɔːsfaɪɹ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: cross‧fire

Noun

crossfire (countable and uncountable, plural crossfires)

1. (military) An arrangement of two or more weapons so each can fire diagonally at something in front of a line between them.
2. The danger to a third party passing between two belligerents firing at one another.

   The two factions were either side of the road. A civilian lorry was caught in the crossfire and became collateral damage

3. The danger to a third party passing between a gunman and his target.
   • 2024 May 15, Geneva Abdul, “Woman hit in London drive-by shooting was not intended target, police say”, in The Guardian‎^[1]:

     A woman who was caught in the crossfire of a drive-by shooting in north London on Tuesday evening was not the intended target, police have said.

4. (by extension) A heated confrontation between opposing factions.

Translations

lines of fire

• Assamese: গুলীয়াগুলী (guliaguli)
• Bulgarian: кръ́стосан о́гън m (krǎ́stosan ógǎn)
• Catalan: foc creuat m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 交火 (zh) (jiāohuǒ)

• Czech: křížová palba f
• Danish: krydsild c
• Finnish: ristituli (fi)
• French: feux croisés m pl
• German: Kreuzfeuer (de) f
• Hebrew: אֵשׁ צוֹלֶבֶת (he) f (esh tzolévet)
• Hungarian: kereszttűz (hu)
• Italian: fuoco incrociato m
• Japanese: 十字砲火 (じゅうじほうか, jūjihōka)
• Polish: ogień krzyżowy m
• Portuguese: fogo cruzado m
• Russian: перекрёстный ого́нь m (perekrjóstnyj ogónʹ)
• Spanish: fuego cruzado (es) m
• Swedish: korseld c
• Turkish: çapraz ateş (tr)
• Ukrainian: перехре́сний вого́нь m (perexrésnyj vohónʹ)

heated confrontation

• Finnish: sanaharkka (fi), kiistely (fi), riita (fi), riitely (fi)
• Polish: ogień krzyżowy m
• Portuguese: fogo cruzado m
• Russian: перекрёстный ого́нь m (perekrjóstnyj ogónʹ)
• Turkish: çapraz ateş (tr)