collateral damage

noun

/kəˌlætərəl ˈdæmɪdʒ/

[uncountable]

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deaths of or injury to civilians (= people not in the armed forces) or damage to buildings that are not connected to the military during a war. People say ‘collateral damage’ to avoid saying ‘innocent people being killed’.附带损害：战争期间平民的死亡或伤害，或与战争无关的建筑物的损坏。人们说“附带损害”以避免说“无辜者被杀”。
- Collateral damage caused by the drone attacks was high.无人机袭击造成的附带损害很大。
- They were rightly concerned about civilian collateral damage.他们对平民附带损害的担忧是有道理的。
- (figurative) As forests are cleared for logging, woodland caribou become collateral damage (= the animals die even though they are not deliberately killed).随着森林被砍伐，林地驯鹿成为附带损害。