go-ahead

[goh-uh-hed]

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

verb

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

noun

1. informal,  permission to proceed

adjective

1. enterprising or ambitious

Word History and Origins

Origin of go ahead¹

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

Idioms and Phrases

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]

Example Sentences

Disney, which owns ABC, also has major deals pending that require the government’s go-ahead.

From Salon

Their tying and go-ahead runs in the Fall Classic clincher came on a pair of productive at-bats in the form of sacrifice flies.

From Los Angeles Times

Monday’s Supreme Court order gives the go-ahead on what critics called “indiscriminate” immigration stops that led to thousands of arrests and set off days of protests in the Los Angeles area.

From Los Angeles Times

The ruling Monday gave authorities the go-ahead to continue operating with those tactics, while the issues are litigated in the lower courts.

From Los Angeles Times

The courts ruled that emissions from burning the oil and gas must be considered by ministers when deciding whether to give projects the go-ahead.

From BBC

Related Words

• assent 
• consent 
• green light 
• permission