to go on
∞
1.8
- phrasal verb
- /ɡoʊ ɑn/
- After a brief pause, she encouraged him to go on with the story.
- go on to say
- go on to describe
- go on to explain
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Watch on YouTubeAnd she'll go on and add to this.
- And she'll go on and add to this.
- This is what Europeans go on and on about about us.
- So he goes on and he says, here we go.
- Things like go on, tell me more, what else?
- So then I right, she goes on and this made my fucking day.
- OK, let's go on to the next question.
- But to have to go on and on and on.
Examples
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Go on.
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Yeah, go on, go on.
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I mean, I could go on and on and on.
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I mean, I could go on and on and on.
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Things like go on, tell me more, what else?
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So why not pause and then go on, if you will?
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How much longer must we go on with this nonsense?
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Go on, make the move.
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One of the preachers said, "Ah, go on, man, and stop all this suspense."
Fiction book (1990) -
Go on!
Synonyms
∞
2.3
Start or continue something after deciding to do it
∞
1.0
To start again after a pause
∞
1.0
Say something more to give extra information or comment
763
3.0
Begin or continue an action after a pause, often as planned
357
1.6
To continue doing something without stopping
306
1.4
Continue doing something without stopping
253
2.7
To continue doing something after an interruption or when it is difficult
19
2.6
Continue doing something after a pause or interruption
6
7.7
To tell someone to start or continue after they hesitate
Antonyms
How Long
Surface Forms
Morphology
The sense 'to start running/operating' is directly derivable from combining 'go' (begin to run or be in action) with 'on' (into an active/operational state); a learner who knows both constituents can infer this meaning. The verb+on composition pattern signaling change into an active/working state is common in English and relatively transparent cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner is likely to understand it.
Etymology
Go on for speaking uses the same image: your words go on like a person who keeps walking along a path. So it means 'to continue speaking' after a pause.