collateral damage
noun
: injury inflicted on something other than an intended target
specifically
: civilian casualties of a military operation
Examples of collateral damage in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
That the lives of children are not acceptable collateral damage in an ideological campaign.
—
CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2025
The death of civilians and especially of children, who are victims, the collateral damage of a war which nobody has been able to terminate yet.
—Adeola Adeosun, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Aug. 2025
Batista is only the latest piece of collateral damage.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 29 Aug. 2025
The death of civilians and especially of children, who are victims, the collateral damage of a war which nobody has been able to terminate yet.
—Ellise Shafer, Variety, 27 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for collateral damage
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2025
The death of civilians and especially of children, who are victims, the collateral damage of a war which nobody has been able to terminate yet.
—Adeola Adeosun, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Aug. 2025
Batista is only the latest piece of collateral damage.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 29 Aug. 2025
The death of civilians and especially of children, who are victims, the collateral damage of a war which nobody has been able to terminate yet.
—Ellise Shafer, Variety, 27 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for collateral damage
Cite this Entry
“Collateral damage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/collateral%20damage. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share