- 1[intransitive] (of a plan or joke) to fail to have the effect that you had intended synonym go wrong The boys didn't know that their plot had misfired.
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- 2(also miss) [intransitive] (of an engine) to not work correctly because the gas does not burn at the right time The car sometimes misfires in cold weather.
- 3[intransitive] (of a gun, etc.) to fail to send out a bullet, etc. when fired My rifle misfired twice. compare backfire
misfire
verbNAmE//ˌmɪsˈfaɪər//
Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they misfire he / she / it misfires
past simple misfired
-ing form misfiring
NAmE//ˈmɪsˌfaɪər//
noun How do you repair an engine misfire? the misfire of a weaponSee misfire in the Oxford Advanced Learner's DictionaryCheck pronunciation: misfire