backfire synonyms

backfire

v.

  1. To explode

    burst, erupt, detonate; see explode 1.

  2. To go awry

    boomerang, recoil, rebound, ricochet, bounce back, strike back, kick back, fly back, spring back, miscarry; see also fail 1.

Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.