call fire
- noun
- Specialized
:
fuego de apoyo
- The unit relied on call fire whenever they encountered unexpected resistance.
Examples
-
The commander requested call fire to suppress the enemy position.
-
The commander decided to call fire on the enemy position.
-
Effective call fire was essential during the battle to support advancing troops.
-
Can you call fire on that target?
-
The commanding officer requested call fire to target the enemy positions during the mission.
-
When under attack, the unit coordinated with artillery to provide call fire on the designated coordinates.
-
After assessing the situation, the general ordered call fire to ensure precision strikes on the enemy stronghold.
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'fire directed at a specific target in response to a request' is directly derivable from combining 'call' (a formal request) with 'fire' (the shooting of weapons); it essentially denotes a request for firing. Although it is a technical military term, the composition follows a transparent 'call for X' pattern that a B1 learner who knows both constituents would likely infer.
Etymology
The noun call fire comes from the simple image of soldiers making a call, a 'request', to gunners so they can fire, or shoot, at a chosen target. So, call fire means 'fire directed at a specific target after a unit asks for it'.
