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  • go-ahead
    go-ahead
    noun
    Usually the go-ahead permission or a signal to proceed.
  • go ahead
    go ahead
    verb
    (intr, adverb) to start or continue, often after obtaining permission
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.

Go ahead and sign up to get $1,000 and leave.

From Slate • Feb. 17, 2026

Go ahead and use AI to polish your memories.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 30, 2025

"Go ahead, make my day," Musk fired back in response to the threat.

From BBC • Jun. 5, 2025

Go ahead and get two—you won’t want to share.

From Salon • Apr. 18, 2025

“All right,” she cried, “you’re a spoiled baby! I let you out of your promise. Go ahead and ask him.”

From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck

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.