Close combat is a combat situation between two or more opponents at short range.[1][2] Since the rise of ranged weapons and firearms, the term has been used to specifically refer to melee combat.
^MCRP 3-02B: Close Combat, Washington, D.C.: Department Of The Navy, Headquarters United States Marine Corps, 12 February 1999
^Matthews, Phil, CQB Services, retrieved 29 July 2011: At his Specialist Close Combat Course, combat instructor Capt. William E. Fairbairn defined close combat as "fighting an enemy hand to hand or within 20 yards range.”