A go-getter is a person who achieves things through their own energy and initiative instead of waiting for someone to offer them a chance. The word is praise for a colleague, a student or an entrepreneur who goes out and finds clients, ideas and opportunities. It is informal; in an essay, ambitious or proactive sounds more neutral.
When would you say a go-getter?
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be a (real) go-getter; a go-getter who + verb; the go-getter type
- Maria is a real go-getter: she found three new clients in her first month.
- We're looking for a go-getter who can open our new office in Manchester.
- At university he was a go-getter, running two clubs and working part-time.
What changed
First versionOur new manager is very go-getter, so the team is already busier.
RevisionOur new manager is a real go-getter, so the team is already busier.
It is easy to treat go-getter as an adjective like ambitious, but it is a noun that names a type of person. So very can't go before it; it needs an article: a go-getter, a real go-getter. The only change is that very was replaced with a real.
A go-getter is praised for initiative and results. A workaholic simply works a lot, often at their own expense: He's a workaholic who never takes a holiday. A go-getter may not work more than other people but finds things to take on without being asked.
Your turn
Lena is quite shy at parties, but she found five sponsors for the festival without anyone asking. She's a real ___.
Show the answer
go-getter — Lena found five sponsors on her own without anyone asking: initiative and results, so she is a go-getter. A social butterfly loves company and makes friends easily, but Lena is shy at parties.
Describe someone you know who gets things done on their own: a colleague, a classmate or a friend. Say what they achieved by themselves and how long it took.
My friend Dasha is a real go-getter: she started a cake business at nineteen and had twenty regular customers within a year.
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