go back

British  

verb

1. to return

2. (often foll by to) to originate (in)

   the links with France go back to the Norman Conquest

3. (foll by on) to change one's mind about; repudiate (esp in the phrase go back on one's word )

4. (of clocks and watches) to be set to an earlier time, as during British Summer Time

   when do the clocks go back this year?

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go back Idioms  

1. Return, retrace one's steps; also, return to a former condition. For example, I'm going back to the haunts of my youth , or We want to go back to the old way of doing things . [First half of 1500s]

2. Extend backward in space or time, as in Our land goes back to the stone wall , or The family name goes back to Norman times . [Second half of 1600s] Also see go back on .

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Example Sentences

Some of my favorite personal recipes have come out of these moments—things I’ve returned to long after I’ve gone back to “normal life.”

From Salon

I thought I might be going back to Kentucky and sell insurance.

From Los Angeles Times

I had paid it, and there was no going back.

From Los Angeles Times

Yet if you go back and trace the journey to that point, it may never have happened.

From BBC

In all, the S&P 500 has delivered a total return, combining price gains and dividends, of just over 10% going back to 1926.

From Barron's

Related Words

• renege