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Synonyms

go-ahead

American  
[goh-uh-hed] / ˈgoʊ əˌhɛd /

noun

  1. Usually the go-ahead permission or a signal to proceed.

    They got the go-ahead on the construction work.

  2. Baseball. Usually the go-ahead go-ahead run.

    With two outs, and the go-ahead on first, Hoffman winds up and delivers the pitch.

  3. Chiefly Hawaii and California. a sandal held on the foot by a strap between the big toe and the next toe.

adjective

  1. moving forward; advancing.

  2. enterprising.

    a go-ahead Yankee peddler.
go ahead British  

verb

  1. (intr, adverb) to start or continue, often after obtaining permission

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. informal permission to proceed

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. enterprising or ambitious

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
go ahead Idioms  

  1. Move forward rapidly or act without restraint; also, continue something. For example, If you want to borrow the tractor, go ahead . This expression is often put as go ahead with , as in Are you going ahead with the house party? The term dates from the mid-1600s and gave rise to give the go-ahead , meaning “give permission to move or act in some way.”

  2. go ahead of . Make one's way to the front of, as in They went ahead of me to see the purser . [Mid-1700s]

Etymology

Origin of go-ahead

An Americanism first recorded in 1830–40; noun and adjective use of verb phrase go ahead

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Some 25 minutes later, after the barrier was repaired, Allen gave the go-ahead for a restart.

From BBC • Mar. 21, 2026

After the Americans tied the score in the bottom of the eighth, reliever Garrett Whitlock surrendered a double to Eugenio Suárez in the ninth that plated the go-ahead run.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026

That set the stage for Nick Suzuki’s go-ahead goal 49 seconds later, following a Moore turnover deep in the Kings’ end.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 8, 2026

Dillon Brooks led the Suns with 24 points but missed a potential go-ahead basket in the waning seconds as the Warriors, with star Stephen Curry sidelined by a sore knee, escaped with the win.

From Barron's • Feb. 6, 2026

The government gave the go-ahead that the tournament take place.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.