Phrasal verb
go round
Definition
phrasal verb. to be enough for everyone in a group to have some.
phrasal verb. to be sufficient in quantity to satisfy a demand or provide a share for all members of a group; typically used with 'enough'.
Examples
“Is there enough cake to go round?”
“We only have three copies of the book, which isn't enough to go round the whole class.”
“During the drought, the local authorities worried that the remaining water reserves would not go round the growing population of the valley.”
Examples
simple
“Is there enough cake to go round?”
contextual
“We only have three copies of the book, which isn't enough to go round the whole class.”
complex
“During the drought, the local authorities worried that the remaining water reserves would not go round the growing population of the valley.”
Usage
usually used in the infinitive form after 'enough' or in questions about supply.
Teaching tip
contrast this with the physical sense of 'spinning' or 'visiting someone's house' to show how English uses movement verbs to describe distribution.
Pitfall
There is enough bread for go round.
There is enough bread to go round.
the phrase is almost always used as an infinitive with 'to' when following 'enough'.
Phrasal verb
Particles
round
Separability
inseparable
Pattern
go + round
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/go-round