collateral damage

American

noun

the killing of civilians in a military attack.
any damage incidental to an activity.

collateral damage British

noun

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.

But Dublin feels Hull have become "collateral damage" in a case which does not even involve them.

From BBC • May 19, 2026

Multiyear conversions often reduce this collateral damage and remain one of the most reliable, low-error strategies for reducing taxes over time.

From MarketWatch • May 8, 2026

This targeted approach allows the immune system to remove threats efficiently while minimizing collateral damage to nearby tissue.

From Science Daily • Apr. 30, 2026

“The fear is that being collateral damage in the war extends into peace, and this is something we wouldn’t accept and need to work against.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026

I felt immediately sorry Dadi had become collateral damage; I’ve never spoken to her that way.

From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon

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