own goal

noun

1

chiefly British : a goal in soccer, hockey, etc., that a player accidentally scores against his or her own team

2

British : something that one does thinking it will help him or her but that actually causes one harm

The workers scored an own goal by demanding such high wages that no one could afford to employ them.

Examples of own goal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The ball bounced off multiple people, including an Uzbekistan defender and goalkeeper Abduvohid Nematov, before landing in the net as an own goal. —Monica Alba, NBC news, 24 June 2026

In the match against Jordan, Austria were tied 1-1 until an own goal in the 76th minute gave them a narrow lead, and a stoppage-time strike from Marko Arnautović gave them a 3-1 win. —Jibin Joseph, PC Magazine, 22 June 2026

Inside four minutes of the second half, the lead was extended when Marc Cucurella's shot rebounded off Hassan Altambakti for an own goal. —CBS News, 21 June 2026

The tiny nation of 11 million kept its hopes alive for at least a point even after Yazan Al-Arab’s own goal in the 76th minute gave Austria a 2-1 lead. —Darren Sabedra, Mercury News, 21 June 2026

Rhymes for own goal

• bankroll
• bedroll
• borehole
• cajole
• catchpole
• charcoal
• condole
• control
• dipole
• downhole
• enroll
• extol