go back to the tools
go back to the tools verb: to return to one's job after having held, or failed to obtain, a position in a trade union.
Verb
go back to the tools (third-person singular simple present goes back to the tools, present participle going back to the tools, simple past went back to the tools, past participle gone back to the tools)
- To return to one's job after having held, or failed to obtain, a position in a trade union.
- I think Brother Bartalini put it very well when he said they would laugh at you if you had to go back to the tools.1966, Proceedings of the General Convention, United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, page 414
- He could, as they say, 'go back to the tools' but at his age and with his record that might prove difficult.1975, The Spectator, volume 235, page 690
Forms of go back to the tools
| third-person singular present | goes back to the tools |
|---|---|
| present participle | going back to the tools |
| past | went back to the tools |
| past participle | gone back to the tools |
Questions about go back to the tools
- What does go back to the tools mean?
- Go back to the tools means to return to one's job after having held, or failed to obtain, a position in a trade union.
- What part of speech is go back to the tools?
- Go back to the tools is a verb.
- What is the past tense of go back to the tools?
- The past tense of go back to the tools is went back to the tools.
Words near go back to the tools in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: go back to the tools (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.
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Cite this entry: “go back to the tools.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/go_back_to_the_tools. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.