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
Super Bowl ads go back to the first Super Bowl in 1967.
—
Anne Marie Lee, CBS News, 8 Feb. 2025
Teacher retention rates are finally going back to normal, but the district wants to improve those rates.
—Alecia Taylor, Kansas City Star, 7 Feb. 2025
Jeanette worked in Rochester at The Pinnacle Restaurant in the Kahler Hotel and Michael’s Restaurant before going back to school at the age of 50 to become a Unit Coordinator/Secretary at Mayo Clinic, Generose Building.
—Contributed Content, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2025
Through January, the US economy has posted monthly job gains for 49 months, marking the second-longest period of employment expansion on record, according to BLS data that goes back to 1939.
—Alicia Wallace, CNN, 7 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for go back 
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Anne Marie Lee, CBS News, 8 Feb. 2025
Teacher retention rates are finally going back to normal, but the district wants to improve those rates.
—Alecia Taylor, Kansas City Star, 7 Feb. 2025
Jeanette worked in Rochester at The Pinnacle Restaurant in the Kahler Hotel and Michael’s Restaurant before going back to school at the age of 50 to become a Unit Coordinator/Secretary at Mayo Clinic, Generose Building.
—Contributed Content, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2025
Through January, the US economy has posted monthly job gains for 49 months, marking the second-longest period of employment expansion on record, according to BLS data that goes back to 1939.
—Alicia Wallace, CNN, 7 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for go back
Dictionary Entries Near go back
Cite this Entry
“Go back.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/go%20back. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.
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