cannon fodder

American  

noun

1. soldiers, especially infantrymen, who run the greatest risk of being wounded or killed in warfare.

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cannon fodder British  

noun

1. men regarded as expendable because they are part of a huge army

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Etymology

Origin of cannon fodder

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

The team that was set to be Eastern Conference cannon fodder is now in second place, putting the Celtics right where they’re used to being: the thick of a championship race.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 28, 2026

Brenda Doherty: 'My mummy was not cannon fodder'

From BBC • Jul. 18, 2023

“If they need more cannon fodder, that is what they’ll be doing,” he said.

From Washington Times • Nov. 13, 2022

In 1912, my grandfather fled to the United States to avoid becoming cannon fodder for the army of the czar.

From Washington Post • Sep. 30, 2022

They were never numerous, the planters considered it a risk to use them, some were forced to serve as cannon fodder in the colonial wars, others were shunted off to the frontiers.

From Patrician and Plebeian Or The Origin and Development of the Social Classes of the Old Dominion by Wertenbaker, Thomas Jefferson