friendly fire

noun

: the firing of weapons from one's own forces or those of an ally especially when resulting in the accidental death or injury of one's own personnel

Near the river bordering our camp I find the tents of the four soldiers who were supposedly hit by friendly fire.

—Janine Di Giovanni

After all, accidental attacks, though tragic, are common in war. In 1967 alone, "friendly fire" killed 5,373 Americans fighting in Vietnam.

—Michael Oren

Examples of friendly fire in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Pat Tillman, who was born in the San Jose area, was killed by friendly fire in 2004 while serving in Afghanistan. —Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 16 Feb. 2026

Richard Tillman is the brother of Pat Tillman, a former NFL star and US Army Ranger who was killed in Afghanistan by friendly fire. —Jose Fabian, CBS News, 10 Feb. 2026

On April 22, 2004, Pat Tillman was killed by friendly fire in the province of Khost, Afghanistan. —Chuck Schilken, Los Angeles Times, 10 Feb. 2026

During a firefight there, he was struck by friendly fire and killed on April 22, 2004. —Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 9 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1918, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for friendly fire

• acquire
• attire
• bonfire
• campfire
• ceasefire
• conspire
• desire
• enquire
• entire
• greenbrier
• gunfire
• homebuyer