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
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau went back to the same starting lineup that delivered a Game 3 victory over the Pacers for Game 4, sticking with Josh Hart as part of the second unit with Mitchell Robinson starting alongside Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges.
—
Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 28 May 2025
Breaking the cycle starts with recognizing these patterns by taking a good look at your family history, sometimes going back generations.
—Jana Pollack, Parents, 27 May 2025
Putting pressure on stocks was the spike in bond yields, which saw the 10-year Treasury yield briefly go back to mid-February highs above 4.6%.
—Matthew J. Belvedere,kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 26 May 2025
The Mustangs went back ahead on Jack Collins’ RBI single through the left side in the seventh and added an insurance run in the ninth on a Dante Vachini sacrifice fly.
—Staff, Oc Register, 26 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for go back
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Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 28 May 2025
Breaking the cycle starts with recognizing these patterns by taking a good look at your family history, sometimes going back generations.
—Jana Pollack, Parents, 27 May 2025
Putting pressure on stocks was the spike in bond yields, which saw the 10-year Treasury yield briefly go back to mid-February highs above 4.6%.
—Matthew J. Belvedere,kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 26 May 2025
The Mustangs went back ahead on Jack Collins’ RBI single through the left side in the seventh and added an insurance run in the ninth on a Dante Vachini sacrifice fly.
—Staff, Oc Register, 26 May 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 2 Jun. 2025.
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