as in to collapse
to have the reverse of the desired or expected effect
my plan to throw her a surprise party backfired when she ended up thinking that everyone had forgotten her birthday
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in forest fire
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of backfire
Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 18 Feb. 2025
To earn extra money, Rochelle starts charging classmates for help with their assignments, a plan that ultimately backfires.
—Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal, Parents, 19 Feb. 2025
Paul Du Quenoy, Newsweek, 9 Jan. 2025
But rushing a product to market can (and often does) backfire.
—Michael Zuercher, Forbes, 20 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for backfire
Verb
In spite of obvious parallels in the OVO stars’ individual and shared bodies of work, the album $$$4U’s mind-set most resembles Taylor Swift’s Reputation, the cloistered R&B pivot released after lashing out at the erstwhile Kardashian-Wests backfired.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 18 Feb. 2025
To earn extra money, Rochelle starts charging classmates for help with their assignments, a plan that ultimately backfires.
—Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal, Parents, 19 Feb. 2025
Noun
Especially as Chinese companies partner with Greenland for resource extraction, the rhetoric from Trump may very likely backfire.
—Paul Du Quenoy, Newsweek, 9 Jan. 2025
But rushing a product to market can (and often does) backfire.
—Michael Zuercher, Forbes, 20 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for backfire
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backfire
Verb
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More often, husbands or wives or children collapse in tears when the cremains are found.—
David Wharton,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Mar. 2025
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In 2021, more than 200 people died after part of a glacier collapsed in Uttarakhand, carrying a deadly mixture of ice, rock and water that tore through a mountain gorge and crashed through a dam.—
Kathleen Magramo and Esha Mitra,
CNN,
4 Mar. 2025
Verb
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If Dune: Part One flopped, there would be no sequel.—
AJ Thomas,
Forbes,
3 Mar. 2025
-
Firestarter was originally supposed to be directed by John Carpenter, but the studio rejected him because The Thing had flopped.—
Tim Grierson,
Vulture,
21 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Other must-reads California wildfires are burning deeper into urban areas like Altadena and finding new victims.—
Ryan Fonseca,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Feb. 2025
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The funding patch could include some add-ons, including wildfire aid for California, but would otherwise keep spending flat for the remainder of the fiscal year.—
David Sivak,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
26 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
Families huddled around bonfires against the winter cold.—
Compiled by Democrat-Gazette staff from wire reports,
arkansasonline.com,
26 Jan. 2025
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Families huddled in the streets around bonfires against the winter cold.—
Samy Magdy,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Jan. 2025
Noun
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As anyone who has ever tried to build a campfire knows, drier wood burns easier than wet or damp wood.—
Jeff Goodell,
Rolling Stone,
13 Feb. 2025
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Her mattresses, rugs and couches reeked like a chemical campfire.—
Jack Healy,
New York Times,
20 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Backfire.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backfire. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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