- to move or proceed, especially to or from something: They're going by bus.
- to leave a place; depart: People were coming and going all the time.
- to keep or be in motion; function or perform as required: Can't you go any faster in your work?
- to become as specified: to go crazy.
- to continue in a certain state or condition; be habitually: to go barefoot.
- to act as specified: Go warily if he wants to discuss terms.
- to act so as to come into a certain state or condition: to go into debt; to go to sleep.
- to be known: to go by a false name.
- to reach, extend, or give access to: Where does this door go?
- to pass or elapse: The time went fast.
- to be applied, allotted, awarded, transferred, etc., to a particular recipient or purpose: My money goes for food and rent.
- to be sold: The house went for very little.I have a bid of two hundred dollars. Going! Going! Gone!
- to be considered generally or usually: He's short, as basketball players go.
- to serve as a means: This only goes to prove the point.
- to result or end; turn out: How did the game go?
- to belong; have a place: This book goes on the top shelf.
- (of colors, styles, etc.) to harmonize; be compatible; be suited: Your tweed jacket would go better with these pants.
- to fit around or into; be able to be extended, contained, inserted, etc.: This belt won't go around my waist.
- to be or become consumed, spent, finished, etc.: The cake went fast.
- to be or become discarded, dismissed, put aside, forgotten, etc.: Those practical jokes of yours have got to go!
- to develop, progress, or proceed, especially with reference to success or satisfaction: How is your new job going?
- to move or proceed with remarkable speed or energy: Look at that airplane go!
- to make a certain sound: The gun goes bang.
- to be phrased, written, or composed: How does that song go?
- to seek or have recourse for a decision, verdict, corroboration, defense, etc.; resort: to go to court.
- to become worn-out, weakened, ineffective, etc.: His eyesight is beginning to go.
- to die: The old man went peacefully at 3 a.m.
- to fail, break, or give way: The dike might go any minute.
- to come into action; begin: Go when you hear the bell.
- to make up a quantity or content; be requisite: Sixteen ounces go to the pound.
- to be able to be divided; be contained as a mathematical element: Three goes into fifteen five times.
- to contribute to an end result: the items that go to make up the total.
- to have as one's goal; intend (usually used in the present tense, followed by an infinitive): Their daughter is going to be a doctor.
- to be permitted, approved, or the like: Around here, anything goes.
- to be authoritative; be the final word: This is my house, and what I say goes!
- to subject oneself: Don't go to any trouble.
- (used in the infinitive as an intensifier to indicate the idea of proceeding, especially with the expectation of serious consequences): He finally had to go ask for a loan.
- to urinate or defecate.
- to risk, pay, afford, bet, or bid: I'll go fifty dollars for a ticket, but no more.
- to move or proceed with or according to: Going my way?
- to share or participate in to the extent of (often followed by a complementary substantive): to go halves.
- to yield, produce, weigh as a usable amount, or grow to: This field will go two bales of cotton.
- to assume the obligation, responsibility, or function of: His father went bail for him.
- to enjoy, appreciate, desire, or want: I could go a big steak dinner right now.
- to say, declare, think, or feel (usually used to introduce reported speech or thought): I asked the clerk for my receipt, and he goes, “You don't need it.”
- to endure or tolerate: I can't go his preaching.
- the act of going: the come and go of the seasons.
- energy, spirit, or animation: a man with a lot of go.
- a try at something; attempt: to have a go at winning the prize.
- a successful accomplishment; success: to make a go of a new business.
- approval or permission, as to undertake or begin something: The boss gave us the go on the new project.
- a business agreement; deal; bargain: Thirty dollars? It's a go.
- a bout: the main go.
- (in calling the start of a race) start the race; leave the starting line: On your mark! Get set! Go!
- functioning properly and ready: two minutes before the satellite is to be launched and all systems are go.
- go about,
- to occupy oneself with; perform: The shoemaker goes about his work with a smile.
- to change course by tacking or wearing.
- to attempt to obtain; strive for: You'll never get what you want if you don't go after it energetically.
- to be in conflict with or opposed to: It goes against the company's policy.
- to proceed without hesitation or delay: If you want to use my car, go ahead.
- go along,
- to move or proceed.
- to accompany in travel.
- to agree; concur: I can't go along with you on that idea.
- go around,
- to be often in company (often followed by with): to go around with a bad crowd.
- to be sufficient for all: Is there enough food to go around?
- to pass or circulate, as in transmission or communication: The rumor is going around that he was forced to resign.
- go at,
- to assault; attack: He’s lucky I went at him with just my fists when I could have gone at him with a weapon.
- to begin or proceed vigorously: to go at one's work with a will.
- back2 (def. 7).
- go by,
- to be disregarded or not taken advantage of: Don't let this chance go by.
- to be guided by or to rely upon: Don't go by what she says.
- go down,
- to decrease or subside, as in amount or size: Prices went down. The swelling is going down.
- to descend or sink: When does the sun go down?
- to suffer defeat: to go down fighting.
- to be accepted or believed: This nonsense goes down as truth with many persons.
- to admit of being consumed: This food goes down easily.
- to be remembered in history or by posterity.
- to happen; occur: What's been going down since I've been away?
- to leave a university, permanently or at the end of a term.
- to fall short of making one's contract.
- to perform fellatio or cunnilingus.
- go for,
- to make an attempt at; try for: He is going for the championship.
- to assault.
- to favor; like: It simply isn't the kind of life you would go for.
- to be used for the purpose of or be a substitute for: material that goes for silk.
- go in for,
- to adopt as one's particular interest; approve of; like.
- to occupy oneself with; engage in: Europeans in increasing numbers are going in for camping.
- go into,
- to discuss or investigate: Let's not go into the question of whose fault it was.
- to undertake as one's study or work: to go into medicine.
- to join in a partnership or union; combine with: He asked me to go in with him on the purchase of a boat.
- go off,
- to explode, fire, or perform or begin to function abruptly: A gun went off in the distance.
- (of what has been expected or planned) to happen: The interview went off very badly.
- to leave, especially suddenly: She went off without saying goodbye.
- to die.
- to deteriorate.
- to experience orgasm.
- go on,
- to happen or take place: What's going on here?
- to continue: Go on working.
- to behave; act: Don't go on like that!
- to talk effusively; chatter.
- (used to express disbelief): Go on, you're kidding me.
- to appear onstage in a theatrical performance: I go on in the middle of the second act.
- go out,
- to come to an end, especially to fade in popularity: Silent movies went out as soon as the talkies were perfected.
- to cease or fail to function: The lights went out.
- to participate in a social activity: We usually go out drinking on Friday nights.
- to have a continuing romantic relationship: They went out for about a year before getting married.
- to take part in a strike: The printers went out yesterday in a contract dispute.
- to dispose of the last card in one's hand by melding it on the table.
- to achieve a point score equal to or above the score necessary to win the game.
- go over,
- to repeat; review.
- to be effective or successful: The proposal went over very well with the trustees.
- to examine: The mechanic went over the car but found nothing wrong.
- to read; scan.
- go through,
- to bear; experience.
- to examine or search carefully: He went through all of his things but couldn't find the letter.
- to be successful; be accepted or approved: The proposed appropriation will never go through.
- to use up; spend completely: He went through his allowance in one day.
- to persevere with to the end; bring to completion: It was perhaps the biggest challenge of her life, and she resolved to go through with it.
- go under,
- to be overwhelmed or ruined; fail.
- (of a ship) to founder.
- go up,
- to be in the process of construction, as a building.
- to increase in cost, value, etc.
- to forget one's lines during a theatrical performance.
- to go to a university at the beginning of a term.
- to have a continuing romantic relationship with; date: He went with her for two years.
- from the very start; since the beginning.
- to be so thoughtless, unfortunate, or silly as to: It was going to be a surprise but he went and told her.
- ape (def. 7).
- go at it,
- to fight or argue vehemently or violently: My brothers went at it all the time when they were younger, but never did more damage than a black eye or two.
- to have sex or engage in passionate kissing and caressing; make out: There were couples going at it in all of the parked cars on Lover’s Lane.
- bananas (def. 2).
- to perform fellatio or cunnilingus on.
- broke (def. 9).
- to pursue a goal with determination.
- to act or proceed independently, without assistance, companionship, or the like: If you don't want to form a partnership, I'll go it alone.
- native (def. 25).
- steady (def. 18).
- See entry at whole hog.
- to discuss or think about a specific, typically undesirable topic (usually used negatively): No personal questions, please—I don't go there.
- go to!, Archaic.
- you don't say! I don't believe you!
- let's do it! come on!
- go together,
- to be appropriate or harmonious: The rug and curtains don't go together.
- to keep company; date; court: They have gone together for two years.
- to begin vigorously and at once.
- let go,
- to release one's grasp or hold: Please let go of my arm.
- to free; release.
- to cease to employ; dismiss: Business was slack and many employees were let go.
- to become unrestrained; abandon inhibitions: She'd be good fun if she would just let go and enjoy herself.
- to dismiss; forget; discard: Once he has an idea, he never lets go of it.
- to express or utter with abandon: He let go with a sudden yell.
- let oneself go,
- to free oneself of inhibitions or restraint: Let yourself go and get mad once in a while.
- to let one's physical appearance decline; stop taking care of one's appearance: aging TV stars who've really let themselves go.
- See entry at no-go.
- on the go,
- very busy; active: She's always on the go.
- while going from place to place; while traveling.
- (of food) for consumption off the premises where sold: coffee to go.
- a Japanese game for two persons, played on a board having 361 intersections on which black and white stones or counters are alternately placed, the object being to block off and capture the opponent's stones and control the larger part of the board.
- general office.
- general order.
- to move or proceed, esp to or from a point or in a certain direction
- to proceed towards a particular person or place with some specified intention or purpose
- to depart
- to start, as in a race: often used in commands
- to make regular journeys
- to operate or function effectively
- to become
- to make a noise as specified
- to enter into a specified state or condition
- to be or continue to be in a specified state or condition
- to lead, extend, or afford access
- to proceed towards an activity
- to serve or contribute
- to follow a course as specified; fare
- to be applied or allotted to a particular purpose or recipient
- to be sold or otherwise transferred to a recipient
- to be ranked; compare
- to blend or harmonize
- to be known (by a name or disguise)
- to fit or extend
- to have a usual or proper place
- (of music, poetry, etc) to be sounded; expressed, etc
- to fail or give way
- to break down or collapse abruptly
- to die
- (often foll by by)
- (of time) to elapse
- to travel past
- to be guided (by)
- to occur
- to be eliminated, abolished, or given up
- to be spent or finished
- to circulate or be transmitted
- to attend
- to join a stated profession
- to have recourse (to); turn
- to subject or put oneself (to)
- to proceed, esp up to or beyond certain limits
- to be acceptable or tolerated
- to carry the weight of final authority
- to be contained in
- to endure or last out
- to bet or bid
- to have as one's weight
- US and Canadian (usually used in commands takes an infinitive without to)
- to start to act so as to
- to leave so as to
- to perform well; be successful
- to say: widely used, esp in the historic present, in reporting dialogue
- to be so foolish or unlucky as to
- to intend or be about to start (to do or be doing something): often used as an alternative future construction
- to become crazy, enraged, or out of control
- to become crazy or extremely enthusiastic about
- to be mislaid; go missing
- to act as surety
- go bush See bush 1 (def. 14)
- go halves See half (def. 15)
- to cause trouble or unhappiness (to)
- to do something or move energetically
- to act or proceed without allies or help
- to approve of or be in agreement with (something): usually used in the negative
- to surpass or outdo (someone)
- go the whole hog informal See hog (def. 9)
- let go
- to relax one's hold (on); release
- to dismiss (from employment)
- to discuss or consider no further
- let oneself go
- to act in an uninhibited manner
- to lose interest in one's appearance, manners, etc
- to go
- remaining
- (of food served by a restaurant) for taking away
- the act of going
- informal
- an attempt or try
- an attempt at stopping a person suspected of a crime
- an attack, esp verbal
- a turn
- the quality of being active and energetic
- hard or energetic work
- a successful venture or achievement
- a bout or attack (of an illness)
- an unforeseen, usually embarrassing or awkward, turn of events
- a bargain or agreement
- very popular; in fashion
- from the very beginning
- See get-up-and-go
- impossible; abortive or futile
- active and energetic
- functioning properly and ready for action: esp used in astronautics
- a game for two players in which stones are placed on a board marked with a grid, the object being to capture territory on the board
- general order
