A ‣ Different meanings of go

1. When we leave a place in order to do an activity, especially for enjoyment, we often express it with go + -ing or go (out) for a + noun.
   We could go shopping / sightseeing / swimming / clubbing [to a nightclub] tomorrow.
   Why don’t we go (out) for a walk / drive / drink / meal / picnic at lunchtime?
2. Go can also describe a changing state (usually to a bad one) with certain adjectives.
   My dad’s going grey [his hair is becoming grey] and my uncle is going bald [losing his hair].
   My grandmother is going deaf [deaf = cannot hear].
   Our 12-year-old dog is going blind [blind = cannot see].
   He’ll go mad if you wear his jacket. [become very angry; infml]
3. We use go when we want to ask/say if a road or form of transport takes you somewhere.
   Does this bus go to the National Gallery?
   I think this road goes through the village.
4. Go can also mean ‘disappear’.
   When I looked in the drawer, my watch had gone [it was there before, but not now].
5. Go and get means fetch [go to a place and bring something back with you].
   You stay here, and I’ll go and get the bags from the car.

B ‣ Phrasal verbs and expressions

A: What’s going on in here? [happening]
B: I don’t know. I touched this switch and the lights went out [stopped working].

A: Shall we wait for George or go on to the theatre? [continue or move to another place/thing]
B: Er, I’m not sure of the way; let’s wait for George.

A: How’s the business?
B: Well, it was going well [successful; opp going badly] up until the summer, but since then a few things have gone wrong [there have been problems], and we’ve lost a few customers.

A: Are you going away this year? [going on holiday]
B: Yes. We had a lovely time in Italy last year, so we’ve decided to go back in June. [return]

A: I think I’ll have the chicken. How about you?
B: I’m going for the roast beef. [choosing]

A: How’s it going? [How are you? infml]
B: Not bad. And you?