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Synonyms

go straight

Idioms  

  1. Become a law-abiding person; abandon crime. For example, Once he got out on probation, he swore he would go straight. The use of straight in the sense of “honest” dates from the 1500s and probably alludes to the opposite of crooked, used in the sense of “dishonest” from the 13th century on.

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.

“We just go straight to the negotiating table.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 21, 2026

Despite a "lot of pressure" from teachers to go straight to university, the pair said they did not regret working multiple jobs in their year off to finance a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

From BBC • Mar. 18, 2026

The foreign minister said that if negotiations were to resume, she didn't want to waste any time and wanted to go straight to the difficult chapters.

From Barron's • Mar. 6, 2026

His heart is with the strivers who find that our K-shaped economy makes it impossible to go straight.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 18, 2026

I go straight into the backyard, right up to the tent, and unzip the flap.

From "King and the Dragonflies" by Kacen Callender

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.