Word.ws English Dictionary

go

/ɡə//ɡəʊ/

go verb: to move through space (especially to or through a place). (May be used of tangible things such as people or cars, or intangible things such as moods or information.). Also the clipping of go to the.

Verb

go (third-person singular simple present goes, present participle going, simple past went or (obsolete) yode or (nonstandard) goed, past participle gone or (nonstandard) went)

  1. (intransitive) To move through space (especially to or through a place). (May be used of tangible things such as people or cars, or intangible things such as moods or information.)
    • Why don’t you go with us?
    Synonyms:
    move, fare, tread, draw, drift, wend, cross
  2. (intransitive) To move or travel through time (either literally—in a fictional or hypothetical situation in which time travel is possible—or in one's mind or knowledge of the historical record). (See also go back.)
    • Yesterday was the second-wettest day on record; you have to go all the way back to 1896 to find a day when more rain fell.
    Synonyms:
    move, fare, tread, draw, drift, wend, cross
  3. (intransitive) To navigate (to a file or folder on a computer, a site on the internet, a memory, etc.).
    • For the best definitions, go to wiktionary.org
    Synonyms:
    move, fare, tread, draw, drift, wend, cross
  4. To move (a particular distance, or in a particular fashion).
    • We've only gone twenty miles today.
    Synonyms:
    move, fare, tread, draw, drift, wend, cross
  5. (intransitive) To move or travel in order to do something, or to do something while moving.
    • We went swimming.
    Synonyms:
    move, fare, tread, draw, drift, wend, cross
  6. (intransitive) To leave; to move away.
    • Please don't go!
  7. To follow or proceed according to (a course or path).
    • Let's go this way for a while.
    Synonyms:
    move, fare, tread, draw, drift, wend, cross
  8. To travel or pass along.
    • We went the full length of the promenade before we found a place to sit down.
    Synonyms:
    move, fare, tread, draw, drift, wend, cross
  9. (intransitive, obsolete) To walk; to travel on one's feet.
    • ‘As for that,’ seyde Sir Trystram, ‘I may chose othir to ryde othir to go.’1485, Thomas Malory, Le Morte d'Arthur, Book XII
    Synonyms:
    move, fare, tread, draw, drift, wend, cross
  10. (intransitive) To work or function (properly); to move or perform (as required).
    • The engine just won't go anymore.
    Synonyms:
    function, work, operate, run
  11. (intransitive) To start; to begin (an action or process).
    • You've got thirty seconds to solve the anagram, starting now. Go!
  12. (intransitive) To take a turn, especially in a game.
    • It’s your turn; go.
    Synonyms:
    move, make one's move, take one’s turn
Show 56 more meaningsShow fewer meanings
  1. (intransitive) To attend.
    • I go to school at the schoolhouse.
  2. (intransitive) To proceed (often in a specified manner, indicating the perceived quality of an event or state).
    • That went well.
  3. (colloquial, intransitive, sometimes linked by and) To proceed (especially to do something foolish).
    • Why'd you have to go and do that?
  4. (intransitive) To extend along.
    • The fence goes the length of the boundary.
  5. (intransitive) To extend (from one point in time or space to another).
    • This property goes all the way to the state line.
  6. (intransitive) To lead (to a place); to give access (to).
    • Does this road go to Fort Smith?
  7. (copulative, rather informal) To become (often used with colors and negative states).
    • Near-synonyms: become, get, turn, come, fall, grow, wax
    Synonyms:
    become, get, turn, come, fall, grow, wax
  8. To move to (a position or state).
    • If we can win on Saturday, we'll go top of the league.
  9. To come (to a certain condition or state).
    • They went into debt.
  10. To assume the obligation or function of; to be, to serve as.
    • There is scarcely a business man who is not occasionally asked to go bail for somebody.1912, The Bookseller, Newsdealer and Stationer, volume 36, page 17
  11. (copulative, intransitive) To continuously or habitually be in a state.
    • I don't want my children to go hungry.
  12. To turn out, to result; to come to (a certain result).
    • The decision went the way we expected.
  13. (intransitive) To tend (toward a result).
    • Well, that goes to show you.
  14. To contribute to a (specified) end product or result.
    • qualities that go to make a lady / lip-reader / sharpshooter
  15. (intransitive) To elapse, to pass; to slip away. (Compare go by.)
    • The time went slowly.
  16. (intransitive) To end or disappear. (Compare go away.)
    • After three days, my headache finally went.
    Antonyms:
    remain, stay, hold
  17. (intransitive) To be spent or used up.
    • His money went on drink.
  18. (intransitive) To die.
    • I want to go in my sleep.
    Synonyms:
    assume room temperature, auger in, be called home, be gathered to one's fathers, be like the the One, be no more, be with Jesus, be with the Lord, bite the big one, bite the biscuit
  19. (intransitive) To be lost.
    • The third wicket went just before lunch.
  20. (intransitive) To be out.
    • Smith bowls ... Jones hits it straight up in the air ... and ... caught! Jones has gone!
  21. (intransitive) To collapse or give way, to break apart.
    • Careful! It looks as if that ceiling could go at any moment!
  22. (intransitive) To break down or decay.
    • My mind is going.
  23. (intransitive) To be sold.
    • The car went for five thousand dollars.
  24. (intransitive) To be discarded or disposed of.
    • This chair has got to go.
  25. (intransitive) To be given, especially to be assigned or allotted.
    • The property shall go to my wife.
  26. (intransitive, transitive) To survive or get by; to last or persist for a stated length of time.
    • How long can you go without water?
  27. (transitive) To have a certain record.
    • They've gone one for three in this series.
  28. (intransitive) Of an opinion or instruction, to have (final) authority; to be authoritative.
    • Whatever the boss says goes, do you understand?
  29. (intransitive) To be accepted.
    • Anything goes around here.
  30. (intransitive) To be valid or applicable.
    • The baked beans can go on this shelf, and the same goes for all these other tins.
  31. (colloquial, transitive) To say (something, aloud or to oneself).
    • I go, "As if!" And she was all like, "Whatever!"
  32. (transitive) To make the (specified) sound.
    • Cats go "meow". Motorcycles go "vroom".
  33. (intransitive) To sound; to make a noise.
    • I woke up just before the clock went.
  34. To be expressed or composed (a certain way).
    • The tune goes like this.
  35. (intransitive) To resort (to).
    • The nylon gears kept breaking, so we went to stainless steel.
  36. To apply oneself; to undertake; to have as one's goal or intention. (Compare be going to.)
    • I'm going to join a sports team.
  37. (intransitive) To make an effort, to subject oneself (to something).
    • You didn't have to go to such trouble.
  38. (intransitive) To work (through or over), especially mentally.
    • I've gone over this a hundred times.
  39. (intransitive, often) To fit.
    • Do you think the sofa will go through the door?
    Synonyms:
    fit, pass, stretch, come, make it
  40. (intransitive) To be compatible, especially of colors or food and drink.
    • This shade of red doesn't go with the drapes.
    Synonyms:
    harmonize
    Antonyms:
    clash
  41. (intransitive) To belong (somewhere).
    • My shirts go on this side of the wardrobe.
    Synonyms:
    belong, have a place
  42. (intransitive) Of a ball, to be capable of being potted, not having its path to the pocket obstructed by other balls.
    • He'd like to pot the pink, but I don't think it will go. The green's in the way.
  43. (intransitive) To date.
    • How long have they been going together?
    Synonyms:
    go out, date, see
  44. (transitive) To (begin to) date or have sex with (a particular race).
    • You can date black, you can do white, on a slow night maybe even go for an Asian boy, but most likely you'll go Latino unless the aforementioned guys speak a little Spanish […]2005, Frederick Smith, Down For Whatever, Kensington Books, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 197
  45. (intransitive) To fight or attack.
    • I went at him with a knife.
  46. (US, obsolete, slang, transitive) To fight.
    • You've shown me his weak points, and I'll go him whether you stick by me or not.1900, Burt L. Standish, Frank Merriwell's Tricks: Or True Friends and False
  47. (Australian, slang, transitive) To attack.
    • As big as me. Strong, too. I was itching to go him, And he had clouted Ernie.1964, Robert Close, Love Me Sailor, page 131
  48. Used to express how some category of things generally is, as a reference for, contrast to, or comparison with, a particular example.
    • My cat Fluffy is very timid, as cats go.
  49. (transitive) To take (a particular part or share); to participate in to the extent of.
    • Let's go halves on this.
  50. (transitive) To yield or weigh.
    • Those babies go five tons apiece.
  51. (intransitive, transitive) To offer, bid or bet an amount; to pay; to sell for.
    • That's as high as I can go.
    Synonyms:
    go for
  52. (colloquial, transitive) To enjoy. (Compare go for.)
    • I could go a beer right about now.
  53. (colloquial, intransitive) To go to the toilet; to urinate or defecate.
    • I really need to go.
  54. (imperative) Expressing encouragement or approval.
    • Go, girl! You can do it!
  55. (colloquial, euphemistic, intransitive) To fight, usually with the fists.
    • You said WHAT about my mom? Do you want to go, bro?
  56. (intransitive, usually) To pass (a specified time) in gestation; to be pregnant.
    • For quotations using this term, see Citations:go.

Noun (1)

go (countable and uncountable, plural goes)

  1. (uncommon) The act of going.
    • The Apostles were to be the first of a line. They would multiply successors, and the successors would die and their successors after them, but the line would never fail; and the come and go of men would not matter, since it is the one Christ operating through all of them.1993, Francis J. Sheed, Theology and Sanity, →ISBN
  2. A turn at something, or in something (e.g. a game).
    • You’ve been on that pinball machine long enough—now let your brother have a go.
    Synonyms:
    stint, turn, move
  3. An attempt, a try.
    • I’ll give it a go.
    Synonyms:
    attempt, bash, shot, stab, try
  4. A period of activity.
    • ate it all in one go
  5. A time; an experience.
    • Even if she was bigger and more mature, she would have a tough go of it. We have read a lot on this diagnosis and have known from the beginning what she has been up against.” “It's true about this being a tough go,” I said. “Listen, I'm very sorry, but I'm on call here tomorrow and I will[…]"2011 May 20, Sue L Hall M D, For the Love of Babies: One Doctor's Stories about Life in the Neonatal ICU, WorldMaker Media, →ISBN, page 155
  6. (dated, slang) A circumstance or occurrence; an incident, often unexpected.
    • “Well, this is a pretty go, is this here! An uncommon pretty go!1839, Charles Dickens, Nicholas Nickleby, in 1868, The Works of Charles Dickens, Volume 2: Nicholas Nickleby, Martin Chuzzlewit, American Notes, page 306
  7. An approval or permission to do something, or that which has been approved.
    • We will begin as soon as the boss says it's a go.
    Synonyms:
    green light
  8. An act; the working or operation.
    • Let this suffice, that that same happy night,
      So gracious were the goes of marriage […]1598, John Marston, Pigmalion, The Metamorphosis of Pigmalions Image and Certaine Satyres, 1856, J. O. Halliwell (editor), The Works of John Marston: Reprinted from the Original Editions, Volume 3...
  9. (dated) The fashion or mode.
    • quite the go
    Synonyms:
    mode, style, trend
  10. (dated) Noisy merriment.
    • a high go
  11. (archaic, slang) A glass of spirits; a quantity of spirits.
    • Jack Randall then impatient rose, / And said, ‘Tom's speech were just as fine / If he would call that first of goes [i.e. gin] / By that genteeler name—white wine.'1820, Thomas Moore, W. Simpkin, R. Marshall, Jack Randall's Diary of Proceedings at the House of Call for Genius
    Synonyms:
    gage, measure
  12. (dated) A portion
    • Albert's uncle had had a jolly good breakfast—fish and eggs and bacon and three goes of marmalade.1904, E[dith] Nesbit, “(please specify the page)”, in New Treasure Seekers, London: Ernest Benn, →OCLC
Show 3 more meaningsShow fewer meanings
  1. (uncountable) Power of going or doing; energy; vitality; perseverance.
    • There is no go in him.
  2. (cribbage) The situation where a player cannot play a card which will not carry the aggregate count above thirty-one.
  3. (British, obsolete, slang) A dandy; a fashionable person.
    • That TOM, who was the GO among the GOES, in the very centre of fashion in London, should have to encounter the vulgar stare of this village; or, that the dairy-maid should leave off skimming her cream to take a peep at our hero, as he mounted his courser, is not at all surprising: and TOM only...1881, Pierce Egan, chapter VII, in Tom and Jerry, page 136

Adjective

go (not comparable)

  1. (postpositional, chiefly military and space flight) Working correctly and ready to commence operation; approved and able to be put into action.
    • John Glenn reports all systems are go.1962, United States. Congress, Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the […] Congress, page 2754

Noun (2)

go (uncountable)

  1. (board games) A strategic board game, originally from China and today also popular in Japan and Korea, in which two players (black and white) attempt to control the largest area of the board with their counters.
    Synonyms:
    weiqi, baduk

Proper noun (1) capitalized: GO

GO

  1. (abbreviation) Abbreviation of Gorontalo: a province of Indonesia.
  2. (abbreviation) Abbreviation of Goiás: a state of Brazil.

Noun (3) capitalized: GO

GO (uncountable)

  1. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of graphene oxide.

Noun (4) capitalized: Go

Go (uncountable)

  1. Alternative letter-case form of go (“strategic board game”).
    • It is shown that Stratego is a complex game when compared to other games, such as chess and Hex. The game-tree complexity of 10⁵³⁵ exceeds the game-tree complexity of Go.2010 March, Sander Arts, “COMPETITIVE PLAY IN STRATEGO”, in Maastricht University, archived from the original on 03 Jan 2022, page vii

Proper noun (2) capitalized: Go

Go

  1. A compiled, garbage-collected, concurrent programming language developed by Google.
    • Despite the lower priority placed on features, Go isn't a static, unchanging language. New features are adopted slowly, after much discussion and experimentation. Since the initial release of Go 1.0, there have been significant changes to the patterns that define idiomatic Go.2021, Jon Bodner, Learning Go, O'Reilly, →ISBN, page 327
    Synonyms:
    Golang

Also used as

go is also the clipping of go to the.

go meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

go in Hindi

to move through space (especially from one place to another)
जाना jānā
board game
गो go

go in Tamil

to say
என் eṉ, சொல் col
to make (a specified sound)
எனும் eṉum, ங்கும் ṅkum
to move through space (especially from one place to another)
செல் cel, போ pō
to take a turn
ஆடு āṭu

go in Marathi

to move through space (especially from one place to another)
जाणे jāṇe

go in Urdu

to move through space (especially from one place to another)
جانا jānā
board game
گو go
More languagesFewer languages
go in Bengali
যাওয়া jaōẇa, গো gō
go in Telugu
వెళ్ళు veḷḷu, పోవు pōvu, వెళ్ళిపోవు veḷḷipōvu
go in Malayalam
പോവുക pōvuka, പോകുക pōkuka, വെയ്ക്കി veykki
go in Kannada
ಹೋಗು hōgu
go in Punjabi
ਜਾਣਾ jāṇā
go in Sanskrit
एति éti, याति yāti, गम् gam, आचरति ācarati
go in Sinhala
යනවා yanawā
go in Assamese
যা za
go in Nepali
जानु jānu
go in Pashto
تلل tləl
go in Tagalog
magpatuloy, pumunta, magpunta, maging
go in Arabic
ذَهَبَ ḏahaba, رَاحَ rāḥa, زَالَ zāla, اِخْتَفَى iḵtafā
go in Malay
pergi, go
go in Indonesian
pergi, menjadi, lenyap, menghilang
go in Persian
گو gô
go in Thai
ไป bpai, หมากล้อม màak-lɔ́ɔm, โกะ gò
go in Vietnamese
đi, biến mất, chạy, vận hành
go in Myanmar
သွား swa:, ဂို gui

Examples of go in a sentence

  • This train goes through Cincinnati on its way to Chicago.
  • Chris, where are you going?
  • There's no public transit where I'm going.
  • Wow, look at him go!
  • Fans want to see the Twelfth Doctor go to the 51st century to visit River in the library.
  • This car can go circles around that one.

All 40 example sentences with go

Synonyms of go

30 more synonymsFewer synonyms

Antonyms

1 more antonymsFewer antonyms

All synonyms and antonyms of go

Forms of go

third-person singular presentgoes
present participlegoing
pastwent
past participlegone
alternative Northumbriagan
past (obsolete)yode
past (nonstandard)goed
past participle (nonstandard)went
first-person singular past (archaic)yode
second-person singular present (archaic)goest
second-person singular past (archaic)yode
second-person singular past (archaic)wentest
third-person singular present (archaic)goeth
third-person singular past (archaic)yode
plural past (archaic)yode
past subjunctive (archaic)yode
present participle (archaic)goand

Past tense of go: went

Plural of go: goes

Origin of go

From Middle English gon, goon, from Old English gān (“to go”), from Proto-West Germanic *gān, from Proto-Germanic *gāną (“to go”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₁- (“to leave”). The inherited past tense form yode (compare Old English ēode) was replaced through suppletion in the 15th century by went, from Old English wendan (“to go, depart, wend”). cognates and related terms Cognate with Scots gae, gan, gang, ging, gyang (“to go”), Yola go, goe, goeth, gow (“to go”), West Frisian gean (“to go”), Alemannic German gaa, go (“to go, walk, step”), Bavarian geh (“to go”), Cimbrian ghéenan, gian (“to go”), Dutch gaan (“to go”), Dutch Low Saxon gan, gaon (“to go”), German gehen (“to go”), German Low German gahn (“to go”), Limburgish gaon, goëne (“to go”), Luxembourgish goen (“to go”), Vilamovian gejn, gyjn (“to go”), Yiddish גיין (geyn, “to go, walk”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish gå (“to go, walk”), Crimean Gothic geen (“to go”), Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌲𐌲𐌰𐌽 (gaggan, “to go”). Compare also Albanian ngah (“to run, drive, go”), Ancient Greek κιχάνω (kikhánō, “to meet with, arrive at”), Avestan 𐬰𐬀𐬰𐬁𐬨𐬌 (zazāmi), Sanskrit जहाति (jáhāti, “to shun, avoid, lay aside”).

From Japanese 碁(ご) (go), shorter variant of Japanese 囲碁(いご) (igo), from Chinese 圍棋 /围棋 (wéiqí, literally “encirclement board game”).

▲ English Googleinflu. English Go From go, likely with reference to the first two letters of Google.

Words formed from go

Phrases with go

164 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with go

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about go

What does go mean?
Go means to move through space (especially to or through a place). (May be used of tangible things such as people or cars, or intangible things such as moods or information.).
What is go in Hindi?
Go in Hindi is जाना (jānā), गो (go). See Go meaning in Hindi.
How do you use go in a sentence?
This train goes through Cincinnati on its way to Chicago.
What part of speech is go?
Go can be a verb, a noun, an adjective or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce go?
Go is pronounced /ɡəʊ/ (UK).
What is the past tense of go?
The past tense of go is went.

Words near go in the dictionary

  1. GNUtard
  2. GNUtards
  3. GNV
  4. GNVQ
  5. GNVQs
  6. go
  7. go a bundle on
  8. go a cropper
  9. go a long way
  10. go a mucker
  11. go a raker

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: go (page history and authors); GO (page history and authors); Go (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-uk-to go.ogg, en-us-go.ogg, EN-AU ck1 go.ogg.

Cite this entry: “go.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/go. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.