Skip to main content
to go walking

to go walking

12 1.0
To walk for pleasure or exercise
  • phrasal verb
  • /ɡoʊ ˈwɔːkɪŋ/
translation icon : dar un paseo
  • I needed some space, so I went walking in the woods.
  • go walking in the woods
  • go walking every morning
  • go walking through town

OK, I'm going to go walk on the treadmill and take this book with me.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • While I was on vacation a couple of weeks ago, I went walking along a rocky beach.

    Blog text (9)
  • And my Mary and I went walking and holding hands out in the field, and ...

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Here she goes walking down the street.

  • It's been a long time since I went walking out with a pretty girl.

  • You go walking down the street where all the cars were coming in... ...and it's just the first day, and it was just beautiful!

  • And yet, despite that, he went walking alone ten days later.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Afterwards, I went walking for a few hours to calm myself down.

  • Perhaps we could go walking sometime.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Then came an afternoon when we went walking in a wooded park.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Every morning, I go walking in the park to enjoy the fresh air.

Synonyms

to walk around
vsto go walking
214 1.7

To go on foot in a place without a clear purpose, often for pleasure

may also mean deliberate exercise or a planned outing
to take a stroll
vsto go walking
14 2.0

To walk slowly and enjoy the fresh air

also includes moving for exercise not only relaxed pleasure
to hoof it
vsto go walking
  • Informal
7 8.8

Walk somewhere instead of going by car or bus

focuses more on pleasure or exercise than simply changing transport
to stroll along
vsto go walking
5 2.6

To walk slowly for pleasure along a street or riverside

can also mean moving to keep fit rather than only for enjoyment
to take for a stroll
vsto go walking
2 2.3

Walk slowly with someone, like a baby or a dog, to relax

is used alone or for exercise rather than always with company
to perambulating
vsto go walking
8.2

To walk slowly without a clear purpose

emphasizes aimless leisure not purposeful exercise or long outings

Antonyms

66 1.0

Stay seated without moving

Remain inside a building to avoid bad weather or danger

How Vigorous

to trek
9 3.9
to hike
120 2.0
to go walking
12 1.0
to stroll
122 1.8
to amble
15 4.8

Surface Forms

go walking infinitive
going walking present participle
goes walking third person singular
gone walking past participle

Morphology

go + walking

The meaning 'to take a walk' is directly and compositionally derived from 'go' (move/travel) plus 'walking' (walking as an activity); it follows the productive English pattern go + -ing used for activities (e.g., go swimming, go shopping). This is a common, cross-linguistically transparent construction, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will reliably infer the meaning.

Etymology

Go walking comes from the simple image of going out to walk in parks, fields, or streets for pleasure or exercise, with go meaning 'leave' and walking meaning 'move on foot'. So it means 'to take a walk'.