backfire
Americanverb (used without object)
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backfires,
present (3rd person singular)
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backfired,
past participle, past
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backfiring
present participle
verb
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(of an internal-combustion engine) to emit a loud noise as a result of an explosion in the inlet manifold or exhaust system
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(of an endeavour, plan, etc) to have an unwanted effect on its perpetrator
his plans backfired on him
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to start a controlled fire in order to halt an advancing forest or prairie fire by creating a barren area
noun
-
-
an explosion of unburnt gases in the exhaust system
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a premature explosion in a cylinder or inlet manifold
-
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a controlled fire started to create a barren area that will halt an advancing forest or prairie fire
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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backfiresimple
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backfiressimple
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have backfiredperfect
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has backfiredperfect
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am backfiringprogressive
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are backfiringprogressive
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is backfiringprogressive
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have been backfiringperfect progressive
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has been backfiringperfect progressive
Past
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backfiredsimple
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had backfiredperfect
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was backfiringprogressive
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were backfiringprogressive
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had been backfiringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of backfire
Explanation
Use the word backfire when you talk about the sound a car makes when a small explosion in its exhaust system pops — sometimes as loudly as a gunshot. Hearing a car's backfire can make you jump, because it makes a sharp, shot-like sound. A backfire is usually caused by unburned fuel, and it can be accompanied by a burst of flame and a brief loss of power in the vehicle, as well as a fairly loud noise. The word comes from an American English term that originally referred to a fire deliberately set to slow the progress of a prairie or forest fire.
Vocabulary lists containing backfire
"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" by Jeff Kinney
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"Laws are not the only way to boost immunization”: an editorial from Nature
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Catching Fire
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernández wondered whether the Braves’ game plan might soon backfire.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2026
Did Ferguson ever fear that throwing his young players in at the deep end could backfire?
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
Executives may sense that these arrangements are wrong and perhaps fear that they will backfire someday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
"It seems to me that this has the potential to backfire spectacularly," she said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
Now the others began to act out, and the sense of justice and desire for equal rights that Mommy and my father had imparted to us began to backfire.
From "The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother" by James McBride
The company has long relied on this high-yielding equity as its primary engine to bankroll Bitcoin acquisitions—a strategy that backfires when the shares lose ground.
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
All of the above comes with a caveat: Unbridled choice often backfires.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
Is there a chance this really backfires, then?
From Slate ● Jan. 13, 2026
The programme describes it as a hero's plot for peace that backfires with drastic consequences.
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2025
The car behind me at the drive-thru backfires, and I rush inside.
From "Dumplin'" by Julie Murphy
The popularity of companion apps may show that policy has backfired.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
Most have done so without incident but an insurer owned by Golden Gate Capital was put into liquidation by Connecticut regulators in January after its reinsurance deals backfired.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
The last time they tried, it backfired spectacularly.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
But a police crackdown on crowds marching towards parliament on July 20 backfired, galvanising support for the movement and transforming anger over exam leaks into a broader expression of youth frustration.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
This was usually a foolproof comeback, making up in scorn what it lacked in originality, but on this occasion it backfired.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
"The policy risks backfiring because it would result in stockpiling of diesel, and as that storage runs out, refineries would need to cut back on production," he said.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
Nestlé tweaked its portfolio, but investors say some acquisitions were a distraction, backfiring as the company expanded into non-core areas.
From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026
In fact, it is backfiring, dusting the world in optimistic, spring-flower pink schadenfreude.
From Salon ● May 16, 2026
The critics argue Lemssouguer relies heavily on borrowed money, or leverage, to boost profits, a strategy prone to backfiring.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 4, 2026
Then a truck came toward us with its chains ratding and its engine backfiring.
From "The Stranger" by Albert Camus
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
