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

The relationship between Sam Altman and Elon Musk goes back to the early days of OpenAI—then a nonprofit research lab. —Lauren Goode, WIRED, 20 Feb. 2025

In September, after Kim sustained a season-ending shoulder injury, Bogaerts went back to shortstop on a then-temporary basis. —Dennis Lin, The Athletic, 20 Feb. 2025

But one year ago, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced the new 4 Nations Face-Off was born and NHL players would go back to the Olympics in 2026 and 2030. —Ryan Morik, Fox News, 20 Feb. 2025

Here are four key points: The tradition of independent agencies goes back to the 1880s. —Steve Inskeep, NPR, 20 Feb. 2025

Rhymes for go back

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