backfire
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
But there’s no way this could possibly backfire, right?
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
And it can backfire for those who get overwhelmed easily and don’t see a silver lining to having accumulated a lot of wealth.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 25, 2026
Caballero’s steadfast commitment to his unorthodox approach does occasionally backfire.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
It's nothing new - John Aldridge, Mexico legend Hugo Sanchez and Pele all used the stutter to gain an advantage - but it can backfire spectacularly if the goalkeeper doesn't commit to diving early.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
But almost immediately, the Berlin Wall began to backfire on Khrushchev.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
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
Is there a chance this really backfires, then?
From Slate ● Jan. 13, 2026
The programme describes it as a hero's plot for peace that backfires with drastic consequences.
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2025
The car behind me at the drive-thru backfires, and I rush inside.
From "Dumplin'" by Julie Murphy
The last time they tried, it backfired spectacularly.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
The move backfired after all the other major parties decided not to field candidates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 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
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
The threatened prosecution of aliens also backfired on the Federalists, when Irish immigrants in New York and Germans in Pennsylvania, formerly staunch supporters of the Adams administration, went over to the Republicans in droves.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
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
In fact, it is backfiring, dusting the world in optimistic, spring-flower pink schadenfreude.
From Salon ● May 16, 2026
But in much of the region the transition is at risk of backfiring, adding to economic stagnation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 2, 2025
At around that time, those price increases started backfiring.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 25, 2025
Like the rest of the Wizarding world, Bathilda puts Kendra’s premature death down to a backfiring charm, a story repeated by Albus and Aberforth in later years.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
Vocabulary lists containing backfire
"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" by Jeff Kinney
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"Laws are not the only way to boost immunization”: an editorial from Nature
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Catching Fire
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