crossfire

or cross fire

[kraws-fahyer, kros‐]

noun

lines of gunfire from two or more positions or combatants crossing one another, or a single one of such lines.

a brisk exchange of words or opinions.

a situation involving conflicting claims, forces, etc.

Origin of crossfire

First recorded in 1855–60

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for cross-fire

intersection, junction, give-and-take, networking, shower, salvo, hail, fusillade, bombardment, storm, volley, blast, gunfire, burst, firing, crossfire, attack, explosion, barter, shift

Examples from the Web for cross-fire

Contemporary Examples of cross-fire

When you haven't been in the cross-fire of a smart debater, you panic in the moment.
Obama Should Have Spent More Time in Court
David Frum
October 4, 2012

Historical Examples of cross-fire

His lordship listened, though with a cross-fire of interruptions.
Ruggles of Red Gap
Harry Leon Wilson
Irene kept up a cross-fire of words with the vicomte and Velletri.
The Son of Monte-Cristo, Volume II (of 2)
Alexandre Dumas pre
But, packed as they were, the cross-fire could not fail to be deadly.
Two Sides of the Face
Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
Being here encountered by a cross-fire from the store they were stopped.
The Story of the Zulu Campaign
Waller Ashe
There was a babble of welcome, a cross-fire of question and answer.
Regiment of Women
Clemence Dane

British Dictionary definitions for cross-fire

crossfire

noun

military converging fire from one or more positions

a lively exchange of ideas, opinions, etc

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

Word Origin and History for cross-fire

also crossfire, 1860, from cross (adj.) + fire (n.).