as in collapsed
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 backfired
Cut to today and the previous White House’s rationale has backfired.
—
Elaine Parker, Oc Register, 24 Apr. 2026
Jones' gambit might have backfired, however, and bad blood within the state legislature could hamper his candidacy.
—CBS News, 23 Apr. 2026
But the measure backfired when municipalities’ collection sites were overwhelmed, leading to stockpiles of unused textiles, and the government reversed part of the rule in October.
—ABC News, 22 Apr. 2026
The tactic appears to have backfired, however, after Democrats successfully undertook the same strategy in California and later Virginia, which, along with Utah, have adopted new maps giving them 10 additional seats.
—Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 22 Apr. 2026
That strategy backfired — as did Boston’s reliance on drop coverage — as the 76ers rookie became the youngest player in NBA history to drop 30 points with 10 rebounds in a playoff game.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 22 Apr. 2026
Both manoeuvres backfired against Liverpool at the Amex Stadium in March.
—Andy Naylor, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2026
In New York, efforts by billionaires to defeat a democratic socialist mayoral candidate backfired spectacularly.
—Jessica Mathews, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2026
Just don't try anything like these pranks from companies that backfired in spectacular ways.
—Joe Mutascio, IndyStar, 1 Apr. 2026
Elaine Parker, Oc Register, 24 Apr. 2026
Jones' gambit might have backfired, however, and bad blood within the state legislature could hamper his candidacy.
—CBS News, 23 Apr. 2026
But the measure backfired when municipalities’ collection sites were overwhelmed, leading to stockpiles of unused textiles, and the government reversed part of the rule in October.
—ABC News, 22 Apr. 2026
The tactic appears to have backfired, however, after Democrats successfully undertook the same strategy in California and later Virginia, which, along with Utah, have adopted new maps giving them 10 additional seats.
—Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 22 Apr. 2026
That strategy backfired — as did Boston’s reliance on drop coverage — as the 76ers rookie became the youngest player in NBA history to drop 30 points with 10 rebounds in a playoff game.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 22 Apr. 2026
Both manoeuvres backfired against Liverpool at the Amex Stadium in March.
—Andy Naylor, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2026
In New York, efforts by billionaires to defeat a democratic socialist mayoral candidate backfired spectacularly.
—Jessica Mathews, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2026
Just don't try anything like these pranks from companies that backfired in spectacular ways.
—Joe Mutascio, IndyStar, 1 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backfired
Verb
-
Bulgaria's previous conservative government collapsed in December after nationwide anti-corruption protests drew hundreds of thousands of mainly young people to the streets.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
20 Apr. 2026
-
The climax hit, and as every Phish fan knows, nearly collapsed the song before Anastasio brought the chicky-chicky guitar back in.—
Jeff Miller,
Rolling Stone,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Cuomo’s podcast and mayoral bid flopped.—
Jon Allsop,
New Yorker,
15 Apr. 2026
-
The comedy flopped at the box office, but Drop Dead Gorgeous proved ahead of its time — the movie cast Amy Adams in her first film role — and has since been declared a cult classic.—
Debby Wolfinsohn,
Entertainment Weekly,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Those lower judges eventually rejected his arguments, and Reed boomeranged back to the justices.—
Ella Lee,
The Hill,
25 Mar. 2026
-
The wild part is how quickly that creator theme boomeranged back at us in real time.—
Dana Harris-Bridson,
IndieWire,
16 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Backfired.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backfired. Accessed 27 Apr. 2026.
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