to backfire
94
5.4
- verb
- /ˈbækˌfaɪər/
- The attempt to improve sales with aggressive marketing tactics backfired, upsetting many loyal customers.
- a plan backfired
- a strategy backfired
- likely to backfire
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Watch on YouTubeWell, that's going to backfire on you too.
- Well, that's going to backfire on you too.
- I guess that threat of firing backfired.
- This is why often sleeping on the first date backfires.
- And I was like, I could leave and it could could backfire on me immediately.
- Vivek Ramaswami says that this finding will backfire.
- And if you push too hard and you change too quickly, that can backfire.
- Look at evidence and not be so hasty with supporting policies that might backfire for the very people you're trying to help.
- If we want strong, sensible long term solutions to climate change to scare people into them by making wild short term predictions, that can backfire in one of two ways.
- So, you know, I think if people are going to attack me strictly because I happen to be gay, I think that that will backfire.
- So that suggests that just giving people information without considering first where they're coming from may backfire at us.
Examples
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I was trying to do a nice thing, and it backfired.
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The strategy eventually backfired in the wake of the devastating Asian financial crisis of 1997.
Academic text (2013) -
And now it's going to backfire on everybody.
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Do you think that strategy might backfire on China?
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I never thought that would backfire on me.
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This whole thing can backfire on us.
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But then things started to backfire.
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Of course, it backfired on him.
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The idea was sound, but it backfired spectacularly.
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The decision, however, backfired, damaging Moscow's reputation in Europe as a reliable supplier.
Academic text (2010)
Synonyms
2
4.3
To fail to get the result you want
1
6.8
To have an unexpected negative result that hurts the person who did it
1
7.0
To have an unexpected bad result for the person or group who started it
1
7.7
To fail in a way that makes things much worse
Antonyms
Phrasal Verbs
How Harmful
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
The word backfire comes from back ('backwards') and fire ('burn'). If a plan 'fires back' at you it returns to hurt you, so to backfire is for something you do to have the opposite or unwanted result.