go
/ɡoʊ/
"go" is a 2-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“go” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #98) as a verb. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.
- #98
- frequency rank, English
- 2,313
- “G” headwords
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 2, 2026) - To move, either physically or in an abstract sense:
Corpus desk
Index EN-go · go · English
go · rank #98 · 0 variants · 20 confusables
- FREQ-CORE #98
- LEN-SHORT 2 letters
- VOW-1 1 vowel
- CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-MID 2,313
- PHOTO-FINISH because
Nearest frequency peer: because (-1 rank slots)
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
Frequency neighbourhood for “go”
Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)
- us
us
99,906 corpus weight
- want
want
99,905 corpus weight
- because
because
99,904 corpus weight
- go
go
99,903 corpus weight
- well
well
99,902 corpus weight
- said
said
99,901 corpus weight
What this shows Bars show where “go” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | go |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ɡoʊ/ |
| Letters | 2 |
| Frequency rank | #98 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “go” sits in English frequency
Easy to mix with look-alikes
The spelling risk for go is neighbouring look-alikes ("GP", "GS", …), not just typos; it is averb pronounced /ɡoʊ/. Frequency #98 among 2,313 “G” headwords. 69 recorded senses keep meaning in play.
No misspelling variants are generated for go in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "GP", "GS", "GR", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English gon, goon, from Old English gān (“to go”), from Proto-West Germanic *gān, from Proto-Germanic *gāną (“to go”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₁- (“to leave”). The inherited past tense form yode (compare Old English ēode) was replaced thro… The correct English form is go, spelled G-O.
Definition
- 1To move, either physically or in an abstract sense:
- 2To move, either physically or in an abstract sense:
- 3To move, either physically or in an abstract sense:
- 4To move, either physically or in an abstract sense:
- 5To move, either physically or in an abstract sense:
- 6To move, either physically or in an abstract sense:
- 7To move, either physically or in an abstract sense:
- 8To move, either physically or in an abstract sense:
- 9To move, either physically or in an abstract sense:
- 10To work or function (properly); to move or perform (as required).
- 11To start; to begin (an action or process).
- 12To take a turn, especially in a game.
- 13To attend.
- 14To proceed:
- 15To proceed:
- 16To extend along.
- 17To extend (from one point in time or space to another).
- 18To lead (to a place); to give access (to).
- 19To become, move to or come to (a state, position, situation)
- 20To become, move to or come to (a state, position, situation)
- 21To become, move to or come to (a state, position, situation)
- 22To assume the obligation or function of; to be, to serve as.
- 23To continuously or habitually be in a state.
- 24To turn out, to result; to come to (a certain result).
- 25To tend (toward a result)
- 26To contribute to a (specified) end product or result.
- 27To pass, to be used up:
- 28To pass, to be used up:
- 29To pass, to be used up:
- 30To die.
- 31To be lost or out:
- 32To be lost or out:
- 33To break down or apart:
- 34To break down or apart:
- 35To be sold.
- 36To be discarded or disposed of.
- 37To be given, especially to be assigned or allotted.
- 38To survive or get by; to last or persist for a stated length of time.
- 39To have a certain record.
- 40To be authoritative, accepted, or valid:
- 41To be authoritative, accepted, or valid:
- 42To be authoritative, accepted, or valid:
- 43To say (something), to make a sound:
- 44To say (something), to make a sound:
- 45To say (something), to make a sound:
- 46To be expressed or composed (a certain way).
- 47To resort (to).
- 48To apply or subject oneself to:
- 49To apply or subject oneself to:
- 50To apply or subject oneself to:
- 51To fit (in a place, or together with something):
- 52To fit (in a place, or together with something):
- 53To fit (in a place, or together with something):
- 54To fit (in a place, or together with something):
- 55To date.
- 56To (begin to) date or have sex with (a particular race).
- 57To attack:
- 58To attack:
- 59To attack:
- 60Used to express how some category of things generally is, as a reference for, contrast to, or comparison with, a particular example.
- 61To take (a particular part or share); to participate in to the extent of.
- 62To yield or weigh.
- 63To offer, bid or bet an amount; to pay; to sell for.
- 64To enjoy. (Compare go for.)
- 65To go to the toilet; to urinate or defecate.
- 66Expressing encouragement or approval.
- 67Clipping of go to the.
- 68To fight, usually with the fists.
- 69To pass (a specified time) in gestation; to be pregnant.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how go appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Why don’t you go with us?
This train goes through Cincinnati on its way to Chicago.
Etymology
From Middle English gon, goon, from Old English gān (“to go”), from Proto-West Germanic *gān, from Proto-Germanic *gāną (“to go”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₁- (“to leave”). The inherited past tense form yode (compare Old English ēode) was replaced through suppletion in the 15th century by went, from Old English wendan (“to go, depart, wend”). cognates and related terms Cognate with Scots gae, gan, gang, ging, gyang (“to go”), Yola go, goe, goeth, gow (“to go”), West Frisian gean (“to go”), Alemannic German gaa, go (“to go, walk, step”), Bavarian geh (“to go”), Cimbrian ghéenan, gian (“to go”), Dutch gaan (“to go”), Dutch Low Saxon gan, gaon (“to go”), German gehen (“to go”), German Low German gahn (“to go”), Limburgish gaon, goëne (“to go”), Luxembourgish goen (“to go”), Vilamovian gejn, gyjn (“to go”), Yiddish גיין (geyn, “to go, walk”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish gå (“to go, walk”), Crimean Gothic geen (“to go”), Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌲𐌲𐌰𐌽 (gaggan, “to go”). Compare also Albanian ngah (“to run, drive, go”), Ancient Greek κιχάνω (kikhánō, “to meet with, arrive at”), Avestan 𐬰𐬀𐬰𐬁𐬨𐬌 (zazāmi), Sanskrit जहाति (jáhāti, “to shun, avoid, lay aside”).
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 2, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.