A student asked me “Dave, what is the difference between ‘here you go,’ ‘there you are,’ there you go,’ ‘way to go,’ and ‘here we go?’” We ended up having a good discussion about these common phrases and when to use them. Here’s how you can use these expressions in your life.

Here you go/Here you are: We use these to announce that something we want is here. They mean the same thing.

Customer: “Medium coffee, please.”

Barista: “Here you go. Careful, it’s hot.”

Customer: “Could you pass the sugar?”

Barista: “Sure, here you are.”

There you go: This is mostly used in arguments, and means something like “I told you so!”

Student A: I think Vancouver is the largest city in Canada.”

Student B: “No, Toronto is larger.”

Student A: “I’m going to ask Google.”

Student B: “You’ll find that I am right…”

Student A: “Oh, Toronto is the biggest! I was wrong.”

Student B: “There you go.”

Here we go: This shows that we are starting an activity.

Driver: “Are you ready?”

Passenger: “Yes!”

Driver: “Ok, here we go!”

Way to go: This means “Congratulations!”

Student: “I got 89% in English class!”

Parent: “Good job! I knew you would pass your test! Way to go!”