go-getter
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of go-getter
1920–25, probably from the exhortation Go get 'em!; see -er 1
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:
We could be the go-getter, the people pleaser, the co-dependent one, or even the savior.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 27, 2026
Which young go-getter is going to take command?
From Slate ● Sep. 6, 2025
A brash go-getter, Sean Combs became an overnight millionaire when he launched Bad Boy Records in 1993 with a roster of top artists.
From BBC ● Feb. 5, 2025
They suggested that the country’s legendary work ethic and go-getter spirit might be a form of mental illness that they called “Americanitis.”
From Salon ● Sep. 12, 2024
A go-getter might have dreamt up clever ways of promoting the two unpopular titles, but I have no mind for business and considered staying awake to be enough of an accomplishment.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
Some go-getters get up even earlier than 5 a.m.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 11, 2026
That’s right, all you go-getters out there: When you scream your 87th cover letter into the ghost-job void, there’s a one in three chance that your time was wasted for “no reason in particular.”
From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2024
They sound like so many of the tendencies that the internet is warning self-actualized go-getters against:
From Slate ● Dec. 1, 2023
You might not ever want to be in the nerd posse or ride with the millionaire go-getters but knowing your mindset and tendencies will help you find your best path.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 17, 2022
It turns out that even two committed go-getters with a deep love and a robust work ethic can’t will themselves into being pregnant.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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.
