BACKFIREとは 意味・読み方・使い方

語源

From back +‎ fire.

名詞

back fire (plural back fires)

1. A small, controlled fire set in the path of a larger uncontrolled fire, in order to limit the spread of the large fire by removing its fuel.
2. An explosion produced either by a running internal combustion engine that occurs in the air intake or exhaust system rather than inside the combustion chamber or unburned fuel or hydrocarbons ignited somewhere in the exhaust system.

アナグラム

• fireback

発音

• (verb) IPA: /bækˈfaɪə(ɹ)/, /ˈbækfaɪə(ɹ)/
• IPA: (noun) /ˈbækfaɪə(ɹ)/

名詞

backfire (plural backfires)

1. A premature explosion in the cylinder of a gas or oil engine during the exhaust or the compression stroke, tending to drive the piston in the wrong direction.
2. An explosion in the exhaust passages of an internal combustion engine.
   • 2024 May 29, Mike Baker, “Sleepless in Seattle as a Hellcat Roars Through the Streets”, in The New York Times‎, →ISSN:

     As much of Seattle tries to sleep, the Hellcat supercar goes on the prowl, the howls of its engine and the explosive backfires from its tailpipes echoing off the high-rise towers downtown.

3. An explosion in other equipment.
   • 1962 July, “Failures of multiple-unit electric trains on British Railways”, in Modern Railways, page 53:

     The chief causes of rectifier backfiring in the Glasgow units were overheating or unfavourable anode/cathode temperature differential; it has proved possible to overcome these, although occasional backfires do still occur.

4. (firefighting) Alternative form of back fire.

同意語

• (premature explosion in engine cylinder): knock, ping

派生語

動詞

backfire (third-person singular simple present backfires, present participle backfiring, simple past and past participle backfired)

1. (intransitive) Of a gun, cannon, Bunsen burner, etc., to fire in the opposite direction, for example due to an obstruction in the barrel.
2. (intransitive) Of a reciprocating engine, to experience a premature ignition of fuel or an ignition of exhaust gases, making a popping sound.
   • 1991 February 4, Ayofemi Folayan, “No Sounds Of Silence”, in Gay Community News, volume 18, number 28, page 7:

     It was just after the Biafran war, and all the local people were still jumpy. Any time a car backfired or a police siren howled, they would dive under desks or tables instinctively.

3. (idiomatic, transitive) To fail in a manner that brings down further misfortune.

   His attempt to make money by importing luxury cars backfired horribly when fuel prices tripled.

   Her plan backfired on her.

   • 2023 August 9, Nigel Harris, “Comment: Disinterested and dishonest”, in RAIL, number 989, page 3:

     Obsessed only with cost, 'Sir Humphrey' saw that Transport for London 'got away' with ticket office closures on the Tube with only minor public pushback and miscalculated that it could do the same on the national network. This assumption backfired spectacularly.

4. (firefighting) To set a back fire (small, controlled fire to limit spread of a larger fire).

Further reading

• backfire on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

アナグラム

• fireback