Check Dictionary

Find out more about word, its definitions etc.

Valid in these dictionaries

TWL/NWL (Scrabble US/CA/TH)
SOWPODS/CSW (Scrabble UK / ALL)
ENABLE (Words with Friends)

Meaning of backfire

1 definition found

From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:

  backfire
      n 1: the backward escape of gases and unburned gunpowder after a
           gun is fired [syn: {blowback}, {backfire}]
      2: a loud noise made by the explosion of fuel in the manifold or
         exhaust of an internal combustion engine
      3: a fire that is set intentionally in order to slow an
         approaching forest fire or grassfire by clearing a burned
         area in its path
      4: a miscalculation that recoils on its maker [syn: {backfire},
         {boomerang}]
      v 1: come back to the originator of an action with an undesired
           effect; "Your comments may backfire and cause you a lot of
           trouble" [syn: {backfire}, {backlash}, {recoil}]
      2: emit a loud noise as a result of undergoing a backfire; "My
         old car backfires all the time"
      3: set a controlled fire to halt an advancing forest to prairie
         fire

Source : WordNet ® Princeton University. 2010.

Use this dictionary checker to learn more about a word - find out its meaning and also make sure whether that word is a valid word in any of these dictionaries (used by popular word games). Here is the list of dictionaries it checks for :

OCTWL / TWL : The official dictionary for scrabble game in United States, Canada and Thailand.
SOWPODS / CSW : UK and the rest of the world uses this dictionary for various word games including scrabble.
ENABLE - This is the default dictionary for Words with Friends.

The dictionary checker is also good at solving any issue with a disputed word when you're playing scramble games gainst your friends or family members. As a bonus, you also learn new words while having fun!

Back to Word Unscrambler