What does 'live fire' mean?
I am reading the Economist, and I am not sure about the meaning of 'live fire' in this sentence: "Security forces responded with live fire; at least 18 people were killed and hundreds wounded". Is it equivalent to "alarm fire"?

Question

Answer

Live fire means use of deadly weapons: guns, bombs etc.

Answer

It means they fired "real bullets" as opposed to "tear gas" or some other form of "non-lethal" round. Firing live rounds into a crowd is normally a last resort.

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to learn a language from the comfort of your own home. Browse our selection of experienced language tutors and enroll in your first lesson now!