What does backfire mean?
Word: Backfire
Part of Speech: Verb
Meaning: Backfire means to have the opposite effect to the one you planned, so that a scheme ends up hurting the person behind it. An engine backfires when fuel explodes noisily in the wrong place.
Synonyms: boomerang, misfire, rebound
Antonyms: work
How do you spell backfire?
Syllables: back - fire
Tricky part: The second part is spelt i-r-e, as fire is on its own; students sometimes write fier or fyre.
Watch out for: backfier, backfyre, backfiere
Memory tip: When a plan backfires, the flames come back at you; fire keeps the same ire as wire and tire.
Backfire in a sentence
Example 1: His plan to scare his sister with a rubber snake backfired when she laughed at him.
Example 2: The old scooter backfired with a bang outside our gate.
Example 3: Shouting at the referee can backfire on a team.
Fun Fact
In America in the 1800s, a backfire was a fire lit on purpose in the path of a forest or grass fire, so it would burn the fuel and stop the bigger blaze.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Makeup
Choose the correctly spelt compound word:
a) earthqauke
b) firewurks
c) landslied
d) backfire
Show answer
d) backfire. Landslide ends in ide, fireworks has works, and earthquake has ua; only one is spelt right.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word: backfire
a) flop
b) fail
c) crumble
d) succeed
Show answer
d) succeed. A plan that backfires goes wrong; a plan that succeeds works.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
His trick of hiding the remote could bakfire if Dad needs it for the match tonight.
a) trick
b) remote
c) bakfire
d) match
Show answer
c) bakfire. Back always has ck before the f.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which situation shows something backfiring?
a) Ravi's shortcut home made him an hour late
b) Ravi bought a new bat for the match
c) Ravi practised hard and won the match
d) Ravi watched the match on TV at home
Show answer
a) Ravi's shortcut home made him an hour late
2. If an old scooter backfires in the street, people nearby will most likely ____.
a) smell fresh paint
b) notice a flat tyre
c) hear a sudden bang
d) see it speed away
Show answer
c) hear a sudden bang
