Meanings
alternative don't pass Go
- To say that somebody is obliged to do something without question.
As usual, this information was imparted to me with a blank stare, and dumped in my lap with an expression that said, "Don't pass Go, don't collect 200 dollars, go straight to jail!"
2001, Janice E. Hale, Learning While Black, page 126
Origin
From the board game Monopoly, in which a certain card ("Go directly to jail; do not pass go, do not collect $200") sends the player to the jail square without the usual traversal of the board.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
don't pass go. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/don't%20pass%20go
“don't pass go.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/don't%20pass%20go. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “don't pass go,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/don't%20pass%20go.
Source: don't pass go on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.