counterfire

American  

[kaun-ter-fahy-er] / ˈkaʊn tərˌfaɪ ər /

noun

1. Military. the act of shooting back, with firearms or other weapons, at someone who is shooting at you, especially with the intention of destroying their weapons.

2. a small, controlled fire used to prevent a larger, more destructive one from spreading.

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verb (used without object)

counterfired, counterfiring

1. to shoot back, with firearms or other weapons, at someone who is shooting at you, especially with the intention of destroying their weapons.

2. to light a small, controlled fire in order to prevent a larger, more destructive one from spreading.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

counterfire

The Army says it will begin fielding its new long-range hypersonic weapons and precision strike missiles in 2023, making them able to suppress enemy air defenses and provide counterfire missions against mobile targets.

From Washington Times ● Dec. 2, 2021

As his platoon suffered heavy casualties, “Second Lieutenant Mueller fearlessly moved from one position to another, directing the accurate counterfire of his men and shouting words of encouragement to them,” the account said.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 22, 2018

No one needs to deny that this lone man's counterfire was courageous and may well have stopped the carnage from being worse.

From New York Times ● Nov. 6, 2017

Instead, U.S. commanders have put their faith in counterfire by air and artillery, guided by sophisticated radar that can get a fix on an enemy rocket position within 20 to 30 seconds of a launch.

From Time Magazine Archive

A whole new set of batteries opened up; he could see smoke rolling across the top of the hill, and no counterfire from behind, no Southern batteries.

From "The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War" by Michael Shaara