backfire

As L3Harris is now encountering, looking past misconduct allegations at previous employers can backfire.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

But there’s no way this could possibly backfire, right?

From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026

“Law enforcement has good intentions but they sometimes backfire with unintended consequences. Often, the more laws you create to prevent people from having a reptile, the more they want them. But sometimes prohibition does work.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

Estate planning can backfire for those who get overwhelmed.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 25, 2026

He was complacent and insecure, daring in the administrative stratagems he employed to bring himself to the attention of his superiors and craven in his concern that his schemes might all backfire.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller

The company has long relied on this high-yielding equity as its primary engine to bankroll Bitcoin acquisitions—a strategy that backfires when the shares lose ground.

From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026

All of the above comes with a caveat: Unbridled choice often backfires.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026

"Discord could lose users if its implementation of age verification backfires, but it could equally attract more new users who will be drawn to its new standards for online safety by design," he said.

From BBC ● Feb. 9, 2026

Is there a chance this really backfires, then?

From Slate ● Jan. 13, 2026

While groans, fiendish gurglings and backfires were emitting from the barn, the house itself would be organized confusion, as the family carried out its preparations in accordance with prearranged plans.

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey

The last time they tried, it backfired spectacularly.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

But a police crackdown on crowds marching towards parliament on July 20 backfired, galvanising support for the movement and transforming anger over exam leaks into a broader expression of youth frustration.

From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026

For much of the past year, the company has attempted to move on after efforts to modernize the chain backfired.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

The chain has experienced other problems as well, including remodels that backfired, agitation among activist investors and same-store sales that have wobbled over Masino’s three-year tenure.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026

I’m sure there are people who believe him—Hailey did—but Ms. Ofrah was right: it backfired.

From "The Hate U Give" by Angie Thomas

But I also feel like there’s a huge risk of that backfiring.

From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2026

Nestlé tweaked its portfolio, but investors say some acquisitions were a distraction, backfiring as the company expanded into non-core areas.

From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026

The critics argue Lemssouguer relies heavily on borrowed money, or leverage, to boost profits, a strategy prone to backfiring.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 4, 2026

At around that time, those price increases started backfiring.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 25, 2025

“No, we got wind of a nasty backfiring jinx down in Elephant and Castle, but luckily the Magical Law Enforcement Squad had sorted it out by the time we got there...”

From "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling