open fire

Idioms  

1. Begin a verbal attack, as in In her second letter to the editor she opened fire, saying the reporter had deliberately misquoted her. This idiom alludes to discharging a firearm. [Mid-1800s]

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Example Sentences

Oli has denied he had told the police to open fire on protesters.

From Barron's

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said after the shooting that an agent had opened fire because he was in fear for his life.

From The Wall Street Journal

Even at that distance, the comet was losing water at a rate of about 40 kilograms per second, comparable to water blasting from a fully opened fire hose.

From Science Daily

That evening I ate grilled fish for supper, tender and delicious with the smoky tang of the open fire, and it brought back the happiest times of my life.

From Literature

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security initially said an off-duty Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who lived at the same apartment complex was responding to a suspected “active shooter” when he opened fire.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• barrage
• batter
• besiege
• blast
• blitz
• bomb
• harass
• hound
• pester
• strafe