open season
noun
1
: a period when it is legal to kill or catch game or fish protected at other times by law
2
: a time during which someone or something is the object of sustained attack or criticism
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web In short, the decision has allowed Texas to declare open season on tech platforms, with huge ramifications for everyone in the country. 
Brian Fung, CNN, 13 May 2022 Too many people were still open season, even for those who protected themselves, the virus evaded the vaccines just barely well enough to ensure its survival and expansion. Andy Larsen, The Salt Lake Tribune, 12 Mar. 2022 Some praised the decision, while others felt the move would signal open season on more children's books. Marco Della Cava, USA TODAY, 11 Mar. 2022 From Germany’s North Sea ports to the French Riviera, open season has been declared on superyachts. New York Times, 8 Mar. 2022 Both believe it’s now open season on conservative outlets. Stephen Battaglio Staff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2022 If 2020 was the year of pandemic lockdown hacking, 2021 was open season for attackers around the world. Lily Hay Newman, Wired, 24 Dec. 2021 That’s an inherently violent process that has required cracking down on small-d democracy, criminalizing resistance of all sorts, and declaring open season on indigenous land defenders. Kate Aronoff, The New Republic, 24 Nov. 2021 Yet the Belarusian play feels fundamentally different and more dangerous, heralding open season on the use of migrants in hybrid warfare. Washington Post, 15 Nov. 2021 See More
Brian Fung, CNN, 13 May 2022 Too many people were still open season, even for those who protected themselves, the virus evaded the vaccines just barely well enough to ensure its survival and expansion. Andy Larsen, The Salt Lake Tribune, 12 Mar. 2022 Some praised the decision, while others felt the move would signal open season on more children's books. Marco Della Cava, USA TODAY, 11 Mar. 2022 From Germany’s North Sea ports to the French Riviera, open season has been declared on superyachts. New York Times, 8 Mar. 2022 Both believe it’s now open season on conservative outlets. Stephen Battaglio Staff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2022 If 2020 was the year of pandemic lockdown hacking, 2021 was open season for attackers around the world. Lily Hay Newman, Wired, 24 Dec. 2021 That’s an inherently violent process that has required cracking down on small-d democracy, criminalizing resistance of all sorts, and declaring open season on indigenous land defenders. Kate Aronoff, The New Republic, 24 Nov. 2021 Yet the Belarusian play feels fundamentally different and more dangerous, heralding open season on the use of migrants in hybrid warfare. Washington Post, 15 Nov. 2021 See More Word History
First Known Use
circa 1890, in the meaning defined at sense 1