go-ahead
noun
Usually the go-ahead permission or a signal to proceed.
go-ahead
American
[goh-uh-hed]
/ ˈgoʊ əˌhɛd /
noun
-
go-aheads
plural
-
Usually the go-ahead permission or a signal to proceed.
They got the go-ahead on the construction work.
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Baseball. Usually the go-ahead go-ahead run.
With two outs, and the go-ahead on first, Hoffman winds up and delivers the pitch.
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Chiefly Hawaii and California. a sandal held on the foot by a strap between the big toe and the next toe.
adjective
-
moving forward; advancing.
-
a go-ahead Yankee peddler.
go ahead
British
verb
noun
adjective
go ahead
Idioms
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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.”
-
go ahead of . Make one's way to the front of, as in They went ahead of me to see the purser . [Mid-1700s]
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
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.
See Examples For:
On Friday, W. Mark Ward, a judge appointed by the Tennessee Supreme Court to review her case, gave the go-ahead for the execution, ruling that the state’s execution process would not violate Pike’s constitutional rights.
From Slate ● Aug. 25, 2026
If it gets the go-ahead, Jackdaw would be ready in "perfect time for the winter season when you need more gas," he added.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
New Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola gave the move the go-ahead last week and spoke to Araujo via phone, before the Uruguay international travelled to England.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
But the ball rolled away from him as he went to flip to first, giving Ohtani time to reach first and Tucker time to score the go-ahead run.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
He kinda nods, as if he’s giving her the go-ahead.
From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas
However, Japan’s Supreme Court last year sided with Tokyo and ruled the relocation should go ahead.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
“The one thing I would like an AI agent to do for me is to go ahead and get rid of AI altogether. Let’s go back to the ‘90s please!”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
The Liberal Democrat leader had been poised to donate at the Brixton Donor Centre but, after filling out paperwork, was told he could not go ahead due to his recent trip to the Charente region.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026
The tournament will go ahead as scheduled from November 12-15, with details on new sponsorship arrangements to be announced at a later date, it said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026
“Mother, I’ll get my boots on and go ahead and tell ’em,” Joe said.
From "Miracles on Maple Hill" by Virginia Sorensen
If they can secure the zoning approval and the go-aheads from the community advisory board and gaming commission, they will then have to pay at least a $500 million license fee to the state.
From New York Times ● May 2, 2022
After my recent column on different synonyms for flip-flops — zories, go-aheads, thongs, etc. — readers wrote in to share terms they learned growing up.
From Washington Post ● May 5, 2021
But church officials say their own plan is “shovel ready,” awaiting formal go-aheads from city and state financing agencies.
From New York Times ● Mar. 26, 2010
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.
