in the crosshairs
8
8.2
- idiom
- Informal
:
bajo el escrutinio
- Schools can expect to be in the crosshairs anytime the governor and the majority party need more revenues.
- put in the crosshairs
- finds itself in the crosshairs
- caught in the crosshairs
And in so doing, he finds himself in the crosshairs of Mohammed bin Salman.
- And in so doing, he finds himself in the crosshairs of Mohammed bin Salman.
- It does a lot of damage to the people who are in the crosshairs of this so-called brutal honesty.
- And not only did he work for Devin Nunez in just deconstructing the whole Steele dossier, but now he's in the crosshairs in the same way Steve Bannon is.
- While we now Fast forward and the person in the crosshairs is Donald Trump, a Republican, obviously a highly controversial figure.
Examples
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As the debate heats up, the governor finds himself in the crosshairs of his opponents, facing tough questions.
-
We are now in the crosshairs of our own government...
Blog text (9) -
Campaign finance is always in the crosshairs.
Blog text (3) -
We are right in the crosshairs of the digital revolution and it's going to change every single business.
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It's enough to give pause to any law firm representing a client caught in the crosshairs of public controversy.
Academic text (2011) -
Very few of us would last if we found ourselves caught in the crosshairs of a blogger.
Blog text (26) -
Walmart is now stuck in the crosshairs of this trade war, and they're being threatened by national governments.
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Over the past year and a half, the number of colleges finding themselves in the crosshairs of the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights over their handling of sexual-assault cases has nearly tripled, to 161.
Academic text (2016) -
The environmental policies of the new administration are in the crosshairs of critics who argue they are insufficient.
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Following the scandal, the CEO was in the crosshairs of the media, with cameras focused on every detail of his life.
Synonyms
105
3.5
Being hurt physically or strongly criticized by others
58
5.0
Receiving strong criticism or being shot at, often in public
1
7.6
In a position where people may blame or criticize you
Antonyms
How Targeted
105
3.5
- Informal
8
8.2
14
4.6
57
2.5
Surface Forms
Morphology
If a B1 learner knows the constituent words (especially 'crosshair' as the aiming reticle) they can readily infer that being 'in the crosshairs' means being targeted or under attack; the spatial/metaphorical composition (position inside an aiming sight = target of scrutiny) is direct and predictable. This imagery is common cross-linguistically and follows normal English composition, so the meaning is immediately accessible from the parts.
Etymology
In the crosshairs comes from looking through a gun scope, where thin lines called the crosshairs mark the exact spot you aim at. If something is in those lines it is being aimed at, so today the phrase means 'being targeted or watched closely'.