Meaning: go

Illustrative Context

I saw him on the road. I don't know where he was going.

Target Sense

• The most basic, intransitive verb for changing location from one place to another place. Often this will be the verb used in very generic expressions like ‘going from A to B’. Note that this meaning is specifically not the sense of walk.
• The priority is to select the most basic word that meets the definitions here. This will be one of the commonest verbs in the language (and one of the first that a foreign learner would need to know). In many languages it is easy to identify: e.g. go, aller, ir. (This frequency also means that your language's verb may be suppletive. If so, then please see below for the special policy needed for which form(s) to enter.)
• On the other hand, many languages do not have a single generic verb corresponding to all of the broad scope of the English verb go, so particular care is needed to follow the specifications given here.
• Although most typically for ground travel by foot, in many languages the basic term is general enough to apply to various modes within a single ‘going’ from A to B. (English go can also cover a journey involving many different modes, even swimming, flying, etc.). Nonetheless, always recall the criterion basic: do not select rare or technical words, just because they are carefully ambiguous between all possible modes: so English go, not move, travel, etc..
• In many languages the most general ‘go’ verb is still transparently based on the more specific sense of going by foot, e.g. Italian andare (from Latin ambulare). Such a verb can and should be selected, provided that its semantic range has spread to become also the more general ‘go’, cover sense too. On the other hand, avoid terms that specifically and exclusively mean going by foot, such as walk or Italian camminare (which has effectively moved into the more specific semantic slot once occupied by ambulare).
• The basic target sense is for movement by people, although the preferred generic word will often be applicable to animals too, or in some languages (like English go) also by vehicles.
• The basic target sense is for people moving by themselves (typically walking). So the verb selected should certainly not be one that exclusively refers to people travelling in vehicles and/or riding on animals. So German fahren is not to be selected, and gehen instead.
• Prototypically the target sense is for deliberate movement, targeting the destination. Avoid words that specifically mean non-targeted, multi-directional movement for the sake of the movement, rather than destination, e.g. avoid terms like wander, amble, go for a walk.
• Prototypically the target sense is for covering some significant distance, not just adjusting position (move). Also avoid words specifically for long distances that could only viably be covered in some vehicle.
• Avoid any overly specific meanings, such as terms that emphasise speed (e.g. run), distance, and so on.
• Do not consider grammatical uses of go-like words, such as progressive or future auxiliaries, inchoative verbs, etc..

Suppletive Forms!

It is particularly common that this verb is suppletive in Indo-European languages, and a very specific policy has to be adopted in this case. Provide first the standard citation form in the language (often the infinitive). However, if the third person singular present form uses a different root, then enter that too, separated by the ≠ character, as in the following examples for Romance languages:

• French: aller ≠ va
• Italian: andare ≠ va
• Spanish: ir ≠ va

For more details, see the guidance/help page on how to deal with suppletion.