Went — or Rushed, Stormed, Plodded, Drove …

How often do you rely on went when you send your characters somewhere?

Mike went to the office, and then Marlene went to the store.

Nothing in the preceding sentence provides any grasp of the situation.

What do we know about Mike and Marlene?

Is Mike happy about going to the office? Did he argue with Marlene before he left for work? Does he live within walking distance? Does he drive a car? Or perhaps ride a moped?

Consider the connotations of the following sentences:

Mike rushed to the office.

Mike stormed to the office.

Mike plodded to the office.

Mike drove to the office.

Mike Segwayed to the office.

Scrutinize Marlene. Is she irked because Mike used up all the milk without telling her? Did she win their argument? Is she forced to ride her bicycle because Mike took the car? So many verbs would be stronger than went:

Marlene steamed to the store.

Marlene stomped to the store.

Marlene breezed to the store.

Marlene chugged to the store.

Marlene biked to the store.

Search through your work in progress to locate all occurrences of the verb to go. Replace with stronger verbs from the list. If a word is close but not exactly what you need, consult your favorite thesaurus for an alternative.

Watch for All the Forms of To Go

go
goes
went
am going
is going
have gone
has gone
will go
will have gone
was going
were going
had gone
will be going
have been going
has been going
had been going
will have been going
having gone

You might be shocked to see how often you depend on this verb in its various tenses.

Here Are More Than 300 Alternatives for Went

A and B
absconded, advanced, ambled, ambulated, approached, ascended, bailed, barged, barreled, beat it, beelined, biked, blasted off, blazed, blew by, bolted, boogied, booted, bounced, bounded, breezed, broke, brushed, budged, bugged out, burst, bustled

C
cantered, capered, careened, careered, cast off, charged, chugged, clambered, cleared out, climbed, clomped, clunked, coasted, coursed, crawled, crept, crossed, cruised, cut and ran, cycled

D
danced, darted, dashed, decamped, defected, departed, descended, disappeared, dislocated, disturbed, dived/dove, doddered, dogged it, dragged, drifted, drove, ducked out

E and F
eased, edged, eluded, emigrated, encroached, entered, escaped, evacuated, evaded, evaporated, excursed, exited, faded, fell, filed, flapped, fled, flew, flitted, flittered, floated, flopped, flounced, flowed, fluttered, followed, forged

G and H
gadded, gallivanted, galloped, galumphed, gamboled, gimped, glided, glissaded, goose-stepped, hastened, headed for, hied, hightailed, hiked, hit the road, hobbled, hoofed it, hopped, hotfooted it, humped, hurdled, hurried, hurtled, hustled

I to L
impelled, inched, itinerated, jerked, jetted, jogged, journeyed, jumped, knocked about, launched, lead, lead-footed it, leaped, leapt, left, legged it, lighted out, lit out, limped, locomoted, loped, lumbered, lunged, lurched

M to O
made a break, made haste, made off, made tracks, marched, maundered, meandered, migrated, minced, moseyed, motored, moved, moved out, muscled, navigated, neared, negotiated, nosed, offloaded

P
paced, padded, paddled, paraded, passed, patrolled, peeled, pelted, penetrated, perambulated, peregrinated, pitter-pattered, plodded, positioned, pottered, pounced, pranced, proceeded, progressed, promenaded, propelled, prowled, pulled out, pushed ahead, pushed away, pushed off, pushed on, puttered

Q and R
quit/quitted, raced, rambled, ran, ranged, receded, recoiled, reeled, relocated, removed, repaired, resettled, retired, retreated, retrogressed, returned, ricocheted, roamed, rocketed, rode, rolled, rose, roved, rowed, rumbled, rushed

Sa to Sk
sailed, sallied forth, sashayed, sauntered, scaled, scampered, scooted, scrabbled, scrambled, scrammed, scudded, scurried, scuttled, Segwayed, set off, shambled, shifted, shimmied, shipped, shot, shoved off, shrank, shuffled, sidestepped, skated, skateboarded, skedaddled, skidded, skied, skipped, skipped out, skirted, skittered, skyrocketed

Sl to Sw
sledded, slid, slipped, slithered, slogged, slunk, smoked, snaked, snuck, soared, sped, split, sprang, sprinted, spurted, staggered, stalked, stamped, steamed, steered, stepped, stirred, stole away, stomped, stormed, straggled, strayed, streamed, strode, strolled, struck out, strutted, stumbled, swaggered, swam, swept, switched

T
tailed, threaded, thundered, tiptoed, toddled, took off, tore, tottered, toured, trailed, traipsed, tramped, trampled, transferred, transported, transposed, traveled, traversed, trekked, tripped, trod, trooped, trotted, trudged, tumbled

V to Z
vacated, vamoosed, vanished, vaulted, veered, ventured, waddled, waded, wafted, walked, waltzed, wandered, weaved/wove, wended, whipped, whisked, whizzed, winged, withdrew, wobbled, wormed, wriggled, zipped, zoomed