“backfires” is a form of
backfire
/ˈbækfaɪə(ɹ)/ noun, verb
Forms backfires backfiring backfired
- noun A premature explosion in the cylinder of a gas or oil engine during the exhaust or the compression stroke, tending to drive the piston in the wrong direction.
- noun An explosion in the exhaust passages of an internal combustion engine.
- noun An explosion in other equipment.
- verb (intransitive) Of a gun, cannon, Bunsen burner, etc., to fire in the opposite direction, for example due to an obstruction in the barrel.
- verb (intransitive) Of a reciprocating engine, to experience a premature ignition of fuel or an ignition of exhaust gases, making a popping sound.
- verb (idiomatic, transitive) To fail in a manner that brings down further misfortune. “His attempt to make money by importing luxury cars backfired horribly when fuel prices tripled.”
- verb (firefighting) To set a back fire (small, controlled fire to limit spread of a larger fire).
Synonyms
Etymology
From back + fire.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “backfire”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details