boomerang

as in to backfire
to have the reverse of the desired or expected effect the well-meaning gesture boomeranged, since he ended up being offended by it

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for boomerang
Verb
  • To earn extra money, Rochelle starts charging classmates for help with their assignments, a plan that ultimately backfires.
    Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal, Parents, 19 Feb. 2025
  • With regard to 2026, one way taking Wiggins could backfire on Miami is if one of the top stars (Doncic, Jackson or Young) bypass extensions and enter free agency in 2026, which would be very surprising.
    Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 18 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • The wealthy were not allowed to simply hoard their wealth, park it in an offshore haven, and escape catastrophe by sailing away from a collapsing society on a superyacht.
    Brian Klaas, The Atlantic, 7 Feb. 2025
  • Firefighters saw heavy flames and smoke coming from the second floor, and the house partially collapsed.
    Amy McDaniel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • The Rangers don't have the best reputation for developing their prospects, but many of the young players that have flopped were homogenous assets that clogged up their organizational pipeline.
    David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Feb. 2025
  • The Right Stuff Year: 1983 Running time: 3 hours 13 minutes Director: Philip Kaufman Years before Bonfire of the Vanities flopped, Hollywood had a much better time adapting Tom Wolfe, turning his nonfiction book about the Mercury program into a clear-eyed piece of Americana.
    Kevin Lincoln, Vulture, 20 Jan. 2025
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Thesaurus Entries Near boomerang

Cite this Entry

“Boomerang.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/boomerang. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.

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