under fire

Idioms  

1. Criticized or held responsible, as in The landlord is under fire for not repairing the roof. This expression originally referred to being within range of enemy guns; its figurative use dates from the late 1800s.

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Example Sentences

"I ran for my life," he told the commission during his first appearance, saying his car had come under fire in an area east of Johannesburg.

From BBC • May 30, 2026

Pratt returned to “The Alex Jones Show” in 2017, when the host was under fire for falsely portraying the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut as a hoax.

From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026

FIFA, already under fire over the high cost of match tickets, previously said that the original host city agreements "required free transportation for fans to all matches."

From Barron's • May 7, 2026

Insurers have come under fire for their handling of the aftermath, particularly their treatment of claims for smoke damage.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 4, 2026

Yesterday we were under fire, to-day we act the fool and go foraging through the countryside, to-morrow we go up to the trenches again.

From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque