go back

verb

intransitive

1

: to return to a place, activity, or situation

I forgot my phone and had to go back.

I left school but later went back.

Once you do this, there's no going back. [=you cannot undo what has been done]

2

: to have existed for a particular amount of time or since a particular period

traditions that go back to ancient times

3

: to have known each other for a particular amount of time or for a long time

We go back 30 years.

They go way back.

4

: to think or talk about something from the past

To understand, you have to go back to when it started.

see also go back on

Examples of go back in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Kaiden Guhle clipped Sean Kuraly with a high stick – this one a no-doubter – and the B’s went back on the PP. —Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 25 Jan. 2026

On New Year's Eve, King began experiencing chest pain, swelling and shortness of breath, and went back to the hospital. —Kerry Breen, CBS News, 24 Jan. 2026

Hagerty’s formula consists of more seasoned wrestlers who have been coached by Scotty Diaz and his staff going back to youth club wrestling. —Steve Gorches, The Orlando Sentinel, 24 Jan. 2026

First Congregational Church, where Nicewander has been pastor for six months, has a long history of activism going back to the abolition movement. —Carolyn Stein, Chicago Tribune, 24 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for go back

• aback
• anzac
• attack
• backpack
• backtrack
• bareback
• blackjack
• brownback
• buyback
• callback
• cognac
• comeback