indirect fire
1
8.2
- noun
- /ˌɪn.dɪˈrɛkt faɪər/
- Specialized
:
fuego indirecto
- We're receiving small arms and indirect fire from hostile troops.
- call for indirect fire
And the Russian lines are built to just defend these indirect fire lines, right?
- And the Russian lines are built to just defend these indirect fire lines, right?
Examples
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The only useful employment of indirect fire in the attack on the embassy in Benghazi would have been the firing of the Final Protective Fires upon the jihadist attackers.
Blog text (17) -
A bunch of angry Muslims protesting, a band of thugs showing up with rocket grenade launchers, and an hours-long battle complete with direct and indirect fire, counter-attack, and strategic defense "just happened."
Blog text (33) -
And the Russian lines are built to just defend these indirect fire lines, right?
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Why the two men happened to be close by and why accurate indirect fire was reported as having been employed in the attack on the embassy is unclear.
Blog text (17) -
By various means, you target your shot to pass over the boulder and explode, killing the deer by indirect fire.
Blog text (11) -
Nobody "threw" rockets; they launched mortars (that's the "indirect fire" you may have read about).
Blog text (1) -
Most of the time, our battalion was hit with indirect fire, mortar rounds, and if someone was hurt during night ambushes, including civilians, we were the first call.
Blog text (3) -
They don't know the weapons are in place until the indirect fire begins, nor are the mortars observed by the drone overhead.
Blog text (31) -
Our soldiers had to take cover from the indirect fire coming from enemy artillery that was hidden in the mountains.
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The military unit was trained to adjust their aim for indirect fire when the target was not directly visible.
Antonyms
How High
- Specialized
- Specialized
1
8.2
- Specialized
1
7.7
- Specialized
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is compositionally built from 'indirect' (not direct, via an intermediary) modifying 'fire' (the firing of weapons), so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to weapon fire delivered without a direct line of sight or via intermediaries. Although somewhat technical/military, the modifier+noun logic is transparent and parallels terms in other languages, making it predictable for B1 learners.
Etymology
Indirect fire comes from the image of guns firing in a high arc over hills so the shooter cannot see the target. The word indirect means 'not in view' and fire means shooting, so the phrase describes using calculations or a person watching the target to hit a place you cannot see.