go to show

English

Verb

go to show (third-person singular simple present goes to show, present participle going to show, simple past went to show, past participle gone to show)

1. (set phrase) To provide an effective example that demonstrates a point; to prove.
   • 1877, Anthony Trollope, chapter 10, in The Life of Cicero:

     [A]ll the evidence that we have goes to show that he spoke the truth.

   • 1971, Jagger–Richards, Marianne Faithfull (lyrics and music), “Sister Morphine”, in Sticky Fingers, performed by The Rolling Stones:

     Well, it just goes to show things are not what they seem / Please, Sister Morphine, turn my nightmare into dreams

   • 1978 July 16, Robert Palmer, “Tom Petty and Heartbreakers In Rock Show at the Palladium”, in New York Times, retrieved 13 June 2018:

     Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, who were at the Palladium Friday night, don't fit comfortably into any of the stylistic niches invented by rock writers. […] All of which goes to show that the current rock scene remains chaotic.

   • 2015 June 11, Karen DeYoung, “As an Iran deal nears, the lobbying, pro and con, intensifies”, in Washington Post, retrieved 13 June 2018:

     “The numbers just go to show — once again — that pundits and presumed communal representatives are flat-out wrong in assuming American Jews are hawkish on Iran.”

References

• “it just goes to show”, in Collins English Dictionary.
• “it shows goes to show” (US) / “it shows goes to show” (UK) in Macmillan English Dictionary.
• “go to show/prove”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.