Meaning trap
go back
have existed since
To have existed or started at a particular time in the past.
Don't mix these meanings
Same phrase, different job.
To have existed or started at a particular time in the past.
Another meaning of 'go back' is 'return'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.
Hear it in context
Notice where the phrase sounds natural.
This tradition goes back to the 18th century.
The use of computers in education goes back several decades, but it has become much more common recently.
Fix the pattern
One small grammar move makes it sound right.
Not: We go back since school.
Say: We go back to our school days. / We go way back.
Use 'go back TO + time', or the set phrase 'go way back' (= known each other a long time).
Which sounds natural?
Tap the one a native speaker would say.
'Goes back to' is the natural way to date a long relationship or tradition. 'Has existed since' is stiff.
Build natural chunks
Words that usually travel with it.
go back + to
- to childhood
- to the 1800s
- years
- way back
Don't confuse it
Related
Other meanings and phrases to compare.
- go back (return) — Another meaning of 'go back' is 'return'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.