line of fire

noun phrase

: the place where bullets are being shot
Some civilians got caught in the line of fire.

Examples of line of fire in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Safety is also an issue; teachers are put in the line of fire, left unprotected in an era of school shootings. Chloe Berger, Fortune, 24 Aug. 2023 Bystanders were nearby and in the line of fire, Neronha’s office said. Brian Amaral, BostonGlobe.com, 13 July 2023 Miles moved his girlfriend back to get her out of line of fire. Carol Robinson | Crobinson@al.com, al, 26 Jan. 2023 However, Jones’ legal team managed to convince a jury otherwise by scouring hours of video, locating the shooting in question, and using an expert video analyst to trace Jones’ movements through the crowd that day and place him directly in the line of fire. Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 30 June 2023 They were forced to dart out of the line of fire for nearly two miles before finding cover on another trail. Shira Rubin, Washington Post, 28 June 2023 That’s also bad news for US companies with major exposure to China — and a number of S&P 500 companies stand first in the line of fire if the situation worsens. Nicole Goodkind, CNN, 8 June 2023 Officers Wilbert Mora and Jason Rivera, who put themselves in the line of fire to protect a mother and son from an armed man in their home, were among nine public safety officers to receive the medal in a ceremony in the White House East Room. Michael Collins, USA TODAY, 17 May 2023 And a recent incident suggests even those deployed thousands of miles away from Ukraine may still be in the line of fire. Sébastien Roblin, Popular Mechanics, 11 May 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'line of fire.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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Cite this Entry

“Line of fire.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/line%20of%20fire. Accessed 30 Sep. 2023.

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