as in collapsing
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
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Recent Examples of backfiring
This is a backfiring gift to Milei’s opponents.
—
Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 26 Oct. 2025
James is one of them, though his kindly attempts to be there for Linda, as amateur repairman and reluctant babysitter, have a way of backfiring, usually on himself.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2025
Why is Trump’s dealmaking backfiring so spectacularly?
—Vivek Viswanathan, The Atlantic, 22 Sep. 2025
Still, some economists say the administration’s chaotic trade strategy is backfiring in at least two ways.
—Matt Egan, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2025
Propping up unpopular regional governments risks backfiring on Gulf Arab leaders in one of two ways.
—David Mednicoff, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2025
However, with the growth of social media and consumer advocacy, retailers are being more cautious about communications to prevent backfiring, not only from investors and analysts but from their core customer base.
—Shelley E. Kohan, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Yet his effort to divide the West is backfiring.
—Kay Bailey Hutchison, Time, 1 Sep. 2025
But his classics lesson is backfiring.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2025
Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 26 Oct. 2025
James is one of them, though his kindly attempts to be there for Linda, as amateur repairman and reluctant babysitter, have a way of backfiring, usually on himself.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2025
Why is Trump’s dealmaking backfiring so spectacularly?
—Vivek Viswanathan, The Atlantic, 22 Sep. 2025
Still, some economists say the administration’s chaotic trade strategy is backfiring in at least two ways.
—Matt Egan, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2025
Propping up unpopular regional governments risks backfiring on Gulf Arab leaders in one of two ways.
—David Mednicoff, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2025
However, with the growth of social media and consumer advocacy, retailers are being more cautious about communications to prevent backfiring, not only from investors and analysts but from their core customer base.
—Shelley E. Kohan, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Yet his effort to divide the West is backfiring.
—Kay Bailey Hutchison, Time, 1 Sep. 2025
But his classics lesson is backfiring.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backfiring
Verb
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The robotics system will coordinate multiple robotic arms to perform many tasks at once, collapsing what used to be three separate robotic stations into one streamlined workspace that can pick, stow, and consolidate in a single place.—
Abhishek Bhardwaj,
Interesting Engineering,
23 Oct. 2025
-
The risk of the roof collapsing prompted the city to take final action against the owner of the former bowling alley.—
Taylor O'Connor,
Kansas City Star,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Van Gogh, now visually fitting in with his family, then scampered about his habitat with his ears flopping along with him.—
Rachel Raposas,
PEOPLE,
23 Oct. 2025
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With Ares flopping, the insider says Leto’s currency in town has run colder than Morbius’ vampire blood.—
Pamela McClintock,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Backfiring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backfiring. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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