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
Janine Di GiovanniAfter all, accidental attacks, though tragic, are common in war. In 1967 alone, "friendly fire" killed 5,373 Americans fighting in Vietnam. Michael Oren
Michael Oren
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web The Browns practiced in pads for the first time on Tuesday, and Stefanski reminded them not to engage in friendly fire. cleveland, 2 Aug. 2022 An investigation by the district attorney's office found that two of those officers were hit by friendly fire, Erie County District Attorney John Flynn said at a news conference announcing the charges. Fox News, 6 July 2022 Only dozens of yards have separated Russian and Ukrainian forces at times, meaning that friendly fire is a common concern. New York Times, 14 June 2022 The friendly fire appears to have punctured his persona as a straight-shooting suburban dad, analysts said. Michael E. Miller, Washington Post, 20 May 2022 The goats happily gobble everything up, creating environmentally-friendly fire breaks. Catherine Garcia, The Week, 2 June 2022 Shanahan bled from friendly fire (an errant Lapointe stick). Gene Myers, Detroit Free Press, 22 May 2022 Corroboration for the friendly fire theory proved elusive. Stephen Engelberg, ProPublica, 12 Apr. 2022 The Patriot system was also deployed in 2003 during Operation Iraqi Freedom and was successful in hitting nine incoming missiles, but also were involved in several friendly fire incidents. Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN, 10 Mar. 2022 See More
cleveland, 2 Aug. 2022 An investigation by the district attorney's office found that two of those officers were hit by friendly fire, Erie County District Attorney John Flynn said at a news conference announcing the charges. Fox News, 6 July 2022 Only dozens of yards have separated Russian and Ukrainian forces at times, meaning that friendly fire is a common concern. New York Times, 14 June 2022 The friendly fire appears to have punctured his persona as a straight-shooting suburban dad, analysts said. Michael E. Miller, Washington Post, 20 May 2022 The goats happily gobble everything up, creating environmentally-friendly fire breaks. Catherine Garcia, The Week, 2 June 2022 Shanahan bled from friendly fire (an errant Lapointe stick). Gene Myers, Detroit Free Press, 22 May 2022 Corroboration for the friendly fire theory proved elusive. Stephen Engelberg, ProPublica, 12 Apr. 2022 The Patriot system was also deployed in 2003 during Operation Iraqi Freedom and was successful in hitting nine incoming missiles, but also were involved in several friendly fire incidents. Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN, 10 Mar. 2022 See More Word History
First Known Use
1918, in the meaning defined above