The AI-powered English dictionary
third-person singular simple present goes by, present participle going by, simple past went by, past participle gone by
To pass or go past without much interaction. examples
To be called, to use as a name. examples
To follow; to assume as true for the purposes of making a decision, taking an action, etc. quotations examples
The uncared-for external appearance of the tanks is nothing to go by, for the glass-lined tanks are kept in perfect condition.
1959 March, R. C. Riley, “Home with the Milk”, in Trains Illustrated, page 155
Or perhaps we will sink back into our culture of complacent exceptionalism and await the next plague that will surely arrive. To go by recent history, that moment will come sooner than we think.
2020 April 9, Richard Horton, “Coronavirus is the greatest global science policy failure in a generation”, in The Guardian