Synonyms

goings-on

American

[goh-ingz-on, awn] / ˈgoʊ ɪŋzˈɒn, ˈɔn /

noun

Informal.

conduct or behavior, especially when open to criticism.

We had never seen such goings-on as at the last dance.
happenings; events.

The American newspaper kept her in touch with the goings-on back home.

goings-on British

plural noun

actions or conduct, esp when regarded with disapproval
happenings or events, esp when mysterious or suspicious

there were strange goings-on up at the Hall

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of goings-on

First recorded in 1765–75; noun use of present participle phrase going on

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The boy, as are children in many Meatyard images, is the innocent witness to elusive goings-on.

From The Wall Street Journal

Being adored without trying, being involved in goings-on without speaking or taking responsibility?

From Salon

In Santa Fe, it’s a house with otherworldly goings-on.

From Los Angeles Times

“The Pitt,” now entering its second season of 15 episodes, could probably have made the goings-on at the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center terminally boring, if the editing weren’t so sharp, the acting so right and the characters both fresh and familiar.

From The Wall Street Journal

In early fall, Ben Carter checked a camera positioned to capture the goings-on in a corrugated metal tunnel installed beneath a breathtaking stretch of the 395 north of the town of Bridgeport.

From Los Angeles Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023