Definition

Noun: 1. Gunfire directed along the length of a formation: A military term for fire from weapons that sweeps along the long axis of a target, such as a column of troops, a trench, or a street, from one end to the other. This type of fire is particularly devastating because it can hit multiple targets in a line with a single shot or burst.

Usage

• Enfilade fire is a tactical concept used to describe the direction and effect of gunfire, not the weapon itself.
• It is typically used in military, historical, or tactical discussions.
• The term often implies a position of advantage for the shooter and a position of vulnerability for the target.

Examples

• The machine gunner positioned himself to lay down enfilade fire on the enemy trench.
• The advancing column was caught in enfilade fire and suffered heavy casualties.
• A key defensive tactic was to avoid positions exposed to enfilade fire.

Advanced Usage

• To enfilade (verb): The act of subjecting a target to enfilade fire.
  • The fort's cannons were positioned to enfilade the entire harbor entrance.
• Enfilading position: A location from which one can deliver enfilade fire.
  • The hill provided an excellent enfilading position overlooking the road.

Variants and Related Words

• Enfilade (noun): Can be used synonymously with "enfilade fire" to refer to the fire itself.
  • The unit was devastated by the enfilade from the woods.
• Flanking fire: Fire directed at the side of a formation. While related, flanking fire is not necessarily directed along the target's long axis.
• Raking fire: A near-synonym often used in naval contexts, meaning fire that sweeps the length of a ship's deck.

Synonyms

• Raking fire
• Longitudinal fire
• Sweeping fire (in a specific, tactical context)

Antonyms

• Frontal fire: Fire directed at the front of a formation.
• Oblique fire: Fire directed at an angle to the long axis of a target.

Noun

1. gunfire directed along the length rather than the breadth of a formation