English
go on
Etymology 1

Structurally equivalent to go onward.

Verb

go on (third-person singular simple present goes on, present participle going on, simple past went on, past participle gone on)

  1. (intransitive) To continue in extent.
    Synonyms: endure, Thesaurus:persist
    The meeting seemed to go on forever.
  2. (intransitive) To continue an action.
    Synonyms: keep on, carry on, advance, forthgo, proceed, resume
    I think I've said enough now; I'm not sure I should go on.
    He went on walking even when the policeman told him to stop.
  3. (intransitive) To proceed.
    Synonyms: carry on, continue, Thesaurus:proceed
    He went on to win a gold medal.
  4. (intransitive) To talk frequently or at great length; to talk about (a subject) in that manner.
    Synonyms: blather, prattle, rabbit, Thesaurus:chatter
    Will you stop going on about your stupid holiday.
    Sam goes on and on about Pokémon.
    Don't ask Sam about Pokémon, because he'll go on and on.
  5. (intransitive) To happen occur.
    Synonyms: come to pass, take place, Thesaurus:happen
    What's going on?
    I really don't want to know what goes on between you and your boyfriend behind closed doors.
Translations Translations Translations Interjection
  1. Expressing that the speaker can continue speaking without interruption from the listener.
    Go on! You were saying about those other ones too?
  2. Expressing surprise, disbelief or incredulity.
    Synonyms: fiddlesticks, go on with you, horsefeathers, pull the other one, Thesaurus:bullshit
    A: He asked Fiona to marry him.
    B: Go on!
    A: It's true, I swear.
  3. (especially, AU, NZ) Expressing encouragement, see come on.
    Synonyms: attaboy, you go, girl, Thesaurus:come on
    Go on! You can do it!
  4. (especially, Britain) yes; okay; it's a deal.
    —So three hundred on the chair then, and can we do two-fifty on the clock?
    —Go on, then.
Etymology 2

Structurally equivalent to go upon.

Pronunciation
  • IPA: /ˈɡoʊˌɒn/
Verb

go on (third-person singular simple present goes on, present participle going on, simple past went on, past participle gone on)

  1. (transitive) To use and adopt (information) in order to understand an issue, make a decision, etc.; to go by.
    We can't go on what this map says; it's twenty years out of date.
    I didn't make a decision because I didn't have anything to go on.


This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.002
Offline English dictionary