as in fails
to go wrong
their scheme to rob the bank misfired disastrously and landed them all in jail
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of misfires
Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Nov. 2025
After returning to form last year at the Thanksgiving box office with a mega franchise in Moana 2 after post-Covid misfires Wish and Strange World, Disney has no plans to drop the ball.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 25 Nov. 2025
As the moon and Mercury clash, your intuition misfires.
—Usa Today, USA Today, 13 Nov. 2025
In short, Nix often grounds his feet into the turf when he's afforded a clean pocket, doesn't appear to generate much momentum, and misfires because of it.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 21 Oct. 2025
To begin with, the company’s unprovoked faceplant was, if nothing else, one of the biggest public relations misfires in recent corporate history.
—Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025
Trump takes control of Washington police as liberal anchor's superhero mockery misfires.
—FOXNews.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Verb
In a bid to make Curtis jealous, Castor brings home from the nightclub the 20something Omar for an overnight hookup, but that misfires spectacularly.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Nov. 2025
After returning to form last year at the Thanksgiving box office with a mega franchise in Moana 2 after post-Covid misfires Wish and Strange World, Disney has no plans to drop the ball.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 25 Nov. 2025
As the moon and Mercury clash, your intuition misfires.
—Usa Today, USA Today, 13 Nov. 2025
In short, Nix often grounds his feet into the turf when he's afforded a clean pocket, doesn't appear to generate much momentum, and misfires because of it.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 21 Oct. 2025
To begin with, the company’s unprovoked faceplant was, if nothing else, one of the biggest public relations misfires in recent corporate history.
—Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025
Trump takes control of Washington police as liberal anchor's superhero mockery misfires.
—FOXNews.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for misfires
Verb
-
The Shift from Profit to Purpose While most companies are in the business of making money, history shows that greed as a business strategy often fails.—
Serenity Gibbons,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
-
And if all else fails, throw a boneless rib eye or skirt steak in the freezer until firm and use a sharp knife to slice it yourself.—
Jesse Szewczyk,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
About 20 Air Force combat planes, including F-15Es, A-10s and AC-130J gunships, as well as MQ-9 Reaper drones and Jordanian F-16 fighter jets, fired more than 90 bombs and missiles toward at least 35 targets Saturday, according to Capt.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
11 Jan. 2026
-
Dishes range from caviar or rock oysters (teamed with cranberry, spiced pumpkin, and classic sauces) to Dover sole meunière, Cornish lobster bisque, black truffle arancini, seared scallop, loin of venison, and chocolate bombs for dessert.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
11 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
There is often community resistance that stalls the building of homes.—
Samantha Delouya,
CNN Money,
21 Oct. 2025
-
But, then again, the market is a forward-looking machine with a motor that never stalls out.—
Kevin Stankiewicz,
CNBC,
21 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Floridians normally wearing flip flops were bundled up to ring in the new year.—
Abby Dodge,
CBS News,
31 Dec. 2025
-
But what happens when such a bold film flops, both critically and commercially, as Jarmusch’s, alas, did?—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
22 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
That last-minute development is reviving debate about the extent of state support for Vanke, one of the last major developers to have avoided an outright default after a broader property market slump sparked record debt failures in recent years.—
Bloomberg News,
Bloomberg,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Studies show that hot spots cause 22 percent of PV module failures within just three years of operation.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Sometimes things are too good to be true or simply don't work, but there are nuggets of gold among the duds.—
Melissa Epifano,
The Spruce,
26 Jan. 2026
-
This latest stretch all came on the heels of following up one of the best wins — not just of the season, but statistically in franchise history — in Oklahoma City with that pair of duds at home against Toronto and Indiana.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
19 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
However, within resources available, countries can build disaster and health response capabilities to mitigate physical and biological catastrophes.—
Edward Lotterman,
Twin Cities,
18 Jan. 2026
-
An observer of catastrophes, come what may.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Chasing virality over community misses the point.—
Jonathan Kleeman,
Rolling Stone,
28 Jan. 2026
-
The narrative of green software solving energy constraints misses the physics.—
Jon Markman,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Misfires.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misfires. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
