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Synonyms

collateral damage

American  

noun

  1. the killing of civilians in a military attack.

  2. any damage incidental to an activity.

collateral damage British  

noun

  1. military unintentional damage to civil property and civilian casualties, caused by military operations

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of collateral damage

First recorded in 1985–90

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Collateral damage included a Paris gig by British hard rock group Royal Blood.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 23, 2022

Collateral damage included a TD bank, a Men’s Wearhouse and an Apple Store, where a single panel of its tempered-glass facade had cracked but not broken.

From Washington Post • Jun. 1, 2020

Collateral damage is not a phrase that he understands.

From New York Times • Jan. 18, 2018

"Collateral damage and inadvertent surveillance of non-targeted individuals is almost certain."

From BBC • Nov. 22, 2013

Collateral damage … a worker inspects oil on the Chaudière river following the freight-train disaster in Lac-Mégantic.

From The Guardian • Jul. 16, 2013

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.