in the crosshairs en · ADP
Pronunciation
- (Australia) audio
Meanings
- (literally) Targeted at the point of intersection of the two perpendicular lines in a gunsight or scope.
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(figuratively) Subject to close scrutiny.
Industry experts are concerned that if the railway doesn't change tack, it would soon find itself out of step with the needs of the nation and in the crosshairs of a Treasury looking to slash spending.
2021 October 20, Ben Jones, “The benefits of (and barriers to) more leisure travel by rail”, in RAIL, number 942, page 32:
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(figuratively) Singled out for blame, harassment, or other unwanted attention.
Nettles lives in the crosshairs, with the secret police, his sympathizers, and his now and would-be lovers making impossible demands on him.
1989 November 3, “Brilliant acting, conception drive ‘Largo Desolato’”, in The Advocate, Louisiana, USA, retrieved 27 Oct 2011:The German industrial giants that exploited slave labor during the war, from Volkswagen to Krupp, are in the crosshairs of class-action suits from Holocaust survivors.
1998 December 2, Frank Rich, “Opinion: What's Good for General Motors . . .”, in New York Times, retrieved 27 Oct 2011:U.S. Representative Jane Harman, a California Democrat, has found herself in the crosshairs of a potential scandal.
2009 April 22, Alex Altman, “2 Minute Bio: California Rep. Jane Harman”, in Time:
Translations (2)
fi tähtäimessä (targeted at a gunsight or scope) · fi luupin alla (subject to close scrutiny)