go back
phrasal verb
went back; gone back; going back; goes back
1
: to return to a place
I forgot my purse and had to go back for it.
After college she went back home.
Go back inside! You'll catch cold.
2
: to return to doing something
I turned off the alarm and went back to sleep.
He waved hello, then went right back to work.
She went back to eating her dinner.
3
: to have existed for a particular amount of time or since a particular period
These ruins go back hundreds of years.
4
: to have known each other for an amount of time
We go back 30 years.
He and I go back a long way.
5
: to think or talk about something from the past
To fully understand the issues, we have to go back a few years.
Examples of go back in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Mann went back and forth between Connecticut and Florida to go to oncologists and other doctor appointments with her son as a treatment plan was set up.
—
Sean Krofssik, Hartford Courant, 21 Apr. 2025
Two back-to-back ejections after the crowd goes back and forth with @ByronDonalds on the Israel-Hamas war.
—Joe Walsh, CBS News, 21 Apr. 2025
Liman set a briefing schedule with the papers going back and forth until July 29.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 21 Apr. 2025
The match began with Uso and Gunther going back and forth with each Superstar hitting their signature moves.
—Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for go back
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Sean Krofssik, Hartford Courant, 21 Apr. 2025
Two back-to-back ejections after the crowd goes back and forth with @ByronDonalds on the Israel-Hamas war.
—Joe Walsh, CBS News, 21 Apr. 2025
Liman set a briefing schedule with the papers going back and forth until July 29.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 21 Apr. 2025
The match began with Uso and Gunther going back and forth with each Superstar hitting their signature moves.
—Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for go back
Cite this Entry
“Go back.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/go%20back. Accessed 24 Apr. 2025.
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