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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.

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

It comes after Moray Council gave the go-ahead to a 10% rise on Wednesday, more than three times the rate of inflation.

From BBC • Feb. 26, 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

Gary Edwards scored the go-ahead touchdown, intercepted a pass to squelch a Plano East comeback, and then scored again.

From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger

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.