backfires

Noun

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.

   Synonyms:

   knock, ping

2. An explosion in the exhaust passages of an internal combustion engine.
   • 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.2024 May 29, Mike Baker, “Sleepless in Seattle as a Hellcat Roars Through the Streets”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 06 Jun 2024
3. An explosion in other equipment.
   • 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.1962 July, “Failures of multiple-unit electric trains on British Railways”, in Modern Railways, page 53

See all 7 meanings of backfire