go over
Britishverb
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to be received in a specified manner
the concert went over very well
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Also: go through. (preposition) to examine and revise as necessary
he went over the accounts
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Also: go through. (preposition) to clean
she went over the room before her mother came
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(preposition) to check and repair
can you go over my car please?
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Also: go through. (preposition) to rehearse
I'll go over my lines before the play
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to change (to a different practice or system)
will Britain ever go over to driving on the right?
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to change one's allegiances
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slang (preposition) to do physical violence to
they went over him with an iron bar
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Examine, review. For example, They went over the contract with great care , or I think we should go over the whole business again . This term originated in the late 1500s, then meaning “consider in sequence.”
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Gain acceptance or approval, succeed, as in I hope the play goes over . This term is sometimes elaborated to go over big or go over with a bang for a big success, and go over like a lead balloon for a dismal failure. [Early 1900s]
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Rehearse, as in Let's go over these lines one more time . [Second half of 1700s]
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.
There are a couple of ways this would go over.
From Slate • Jul. 7, 2026
“I want to go over what I want to go over,” she said, as she opened the retrial’s first hearing.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 29, 2026
Maher said that answer would get Vance an attaboy when he returned to DC, even if it didn’t go over on the talk show set.
From Salon • Jun. 28, 2026
You get one of those, and then you go over to Joan’s on Third, and you get yourself a really strong cup of coffee, because Joan’s is right there, part of the farmers market.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 19, 2026
I wasn’t about to go over there and get it because then he would win: I’d have to see him in person and he’d hook me back in.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
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.
