miss fire

Fail to achieve the anticipated result, as in Recycling cardboard seemed like a good idea but it missed fire. First recorded in 1727, this phrase originally described a firearm failing to go off and has been used figuratively since the mid-1800s.

miss fire

1. To fail to discharge. Used of a firearm.

2. To fail to achieve the anticipated result.

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Donald	['dɔnəld]
Ansigar	-	Ancient Germanic
Paraskeva	-	Bulgarian, Macedonian
Tobith	-	Biblical Greek
Fortunato	-	Italian, Spanish, Portuguese
Maeva	-	Tahitian, French