Usage of "go to" vs "go"

Question

I'm trying to explain the difference between "go to" and "go" and I'm not sure what the actual rule is. I've tried searching about it, but I couldn't find anything.

When should I use "go to" and when should I use "go?" For example, I should say "Let's go home" but not "Let's go to home." On the flip side, "Let's go to your house," but not "Let's go your house."

Can someone help me with the rule behind this?

Home is about the only one that doesn't need to, but there is a small set of locative words that don't need determiners (the, a, his, some, most): go to -∅- work/school/church/college/university (in the UK, also hospital), but go to my job/the store/a play/Bill's party — John Lawler, Mar 17 '14 at 20:36
In this example, home is an adverb. One doesn't go to adverbs. — Anonym, Mar 17 '14 at 20:49
@user61979 According to John Lawler, 'It's an adverbial prepositional phrase that has been stripped of its prepositions and determiners, leaving only a naked noun to stand for the whole phrase. [(]That's how a noun can be used as an adverb.[)]' — Edwin Ashworth, Mar 17 '14 at 20:55
You can also go halves, go places, go yesterday, go today, go tomorrow, go bananas, go commando, go scat, go hippie, go country, go native, go stag, go bush, go ape, go fishing, go walkabout, go bust, go all the way, or go eyes wide open. Well, or go Dutch, but that doesn’t quite count. — tchrist, Mar 17 '14 at 21:55
@tchrist But most of those things represent a state of mind, and follow the form "to go mad"; which I would have thought of as a composite verb. Perhaps the same thing as a verb + adverb? — WS2, Sep 04 '17 at 07:54
"go home" is an idiom, There is no rule. You just have to memorize it. — Lambie, Nov 15 '21 at 20:39
Also related: Is there a reason the British omit the article when they 'go to hospital'?. — Edwin Ashworth, Sep 25 '23 at 11:37
Does this answer your question? Why is this sentence wrong? "He went to home." — Edwin Ashworth, Sep 25 '23 at 11:37
Related: Why does CGEL call "home", "abroad", "here", and "there" prepositions instead of adverbs like dictionaries say?. — jsw29, Sep 25 '23 at 15:59

Qwendr Jo · Answer 1 · 2023-09-25T10:41:02.240

2

Go to can't be used with:
1. home
2. downtown
3. west / east / north / south
4. outside / inside
5. there / back
Go to is used with noun, that means uncommon places (not the cinema, not a restaurant...):
```
go to school / university 
go to prison / church
got to work / bed
```
Go on is used with places related to holidays:
1. vacation / honeymoon
2. trip / cruise

Go for a is used с noun related to activities:

go for a swim / run / walk 
go for a beer / massage

Go + verb:

1. Let's go eat.
2. I need to go wash my car.
3. Go clean your room!

Go + gerund: When we are talking about hobbies or entertaining activities.
```
go hiking
go shopping
going swimming
went sightseeing
```

edited Sep 25 '23 at 10:41

answered Sep 25 '23 at 10:19

Qwendr Jo

21
5

"Go on " is used for more than holidays. "Let's go on a a gruelling 25 mile assault course." I think "go to" is used for nouns that are places or static events ("go to a wedding") and "go on" for nouns that are travels in some sense. Also you do "go to" a cinema. – DJClayworth Sep 25 '23 at 13:29
Thank you for your additions. – Qwendr Jo Sep 26 '23 at 15:56

score 0 · Answer 2 · edited Jun 15 '20 at 07:40

0

What do you notice that is different between your examples?

Let's go home.

Let's go to your house.

Allow me to give a different example:

Let's go to your home.

Are you seeing it? It's the possessive your. What happens when you throw that possessive in? Home goes from being an adverb (modifying go), to a noun which forms a part of an adverbial prepositional phrase. (I don't believe it fits the definition of the indirect object the going is not happening to the house, but rather toward it. Perhaps I'm wrong here.)

Home is a rare word that forms an adverb in this form.

On its own, your home isn't typically used as an adverbial phrase to modify go. Instead we make it part of the prepositional phrase to your home because it explains the action of going.

edited Jun 15 '20 at 07:40

Community

1

answered Mar 17 '14 at 20:36

David M

22,515

He can’t hear you. You can only reach his inbox if you name him in a comment chain that he himself is already part of, or which is affixed to one of his own postings. So you could only ask him in the original question’s chain, in this case. – tchrist Mar 18 '14 at 02:36
@tchrist Gotcha. Thanks. I was sort of hoping he was going to read down after his comment, anyway. – David M Mar 18 '14 at 03:19

score 0 · Answer 3 · answered Sep 25 '23 at 14:25

Some special cases:

go home
go here
go there

Use go with directions

go in/inside
go up
go aft
go downtown¹

Use go to with places or static events

go to school
go to the cinema
go to a wedding

The question of when you use the definite/indefinite/no article is separate and covered in other questions.

Use go on with journeys

go on a cruise
go on a hike
go on an expedition
go on a vacation

There are other questions covering whether you go on or in modes of transport, and other combinations with "go".

Notes:

"Downtown" and similar can be both places and directions, so you "go downtown" but you "go to downtown New York"

Usage of "go to" vs "go"

3 Answers3

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