diff --git a/src/cmd/go/internal/modget/get.go b/src/cmd/go/internal/modget/get.go
index 6867bdaa36f..31e9244e2dc 100644
--- a/src/cmd/go/internal/modget/get.go
+++ b/src/cmd/go/internal/modget/get.go
@@ -337,6 +337,7 @@ func runGet(ctx context.Context, cmd *base.Command, args []string) {
 	r.performLocalQueries(ctx)
 	r.performPathQueries(ctx)
 	r.performToolQueries(ctx)
+	r.performWorkQueries(ctx)
 
 	for {
 		r.performWildcardQueries(ctx)
@@ -513,6 +514,7 @@ type resolver struct {
 	pathQueries       []*query // package path literal queries in original order
 	wildcardQueries   []*query // path wildcard queries in original order
 	patternAllQueries []*query // queries with the pattern "all"
+	workQueries       []*query // queries with the pattern "work"
 	toolQueries       []*query // queries with the pattern "tool"
 
 	// Indexed "none" queries. These are also included in the slices above;
@@ -578,6 +580,8 @@ func newResolver(ctx context.Context, queries []*query) *resolver {
 	for _, q := range queries {
 		if q.pattern == "all" {
 			r.patternAllQueries = append(r.patternAllQueries, q)
+		} else if q.pattern == "work" {
+			r.workQueries = append(r.workQueries, q)
 		} else if q.pattern == "tool" {
 			r.toolQueries = append(r.toolQueries, q)
 		} else if q.patternIsLocal {
@@ -1070,6 +1074,37 @@ func (r *resolver) performToolQueries(ctx context.Context) {
 	}
 }
 
+// performWorkQueries populates the candidates for each query whose pattern is "work".
+// The candidate module to resolve the work pattern is exactly the single main module.
+func (r *resolver) performWorkQueries(ctx context.Context) {
+	for _, q := range r.workQueries {
+		q.pathOnce(q.pattern, func() pathSet {
+			// TODO(matloob): Maybe export MainModules.mustGetSingleMainModule and call that.
+			// There are a few other places outside the modload package where we expect
+			// a single main module.
+			if len(modload.MainModules.Versions()) != 1 {
+				panic("internal error: number of main modules is not exactly one in resolution phase of go get")
+			}
+			mainModule := modload.MainModules.Versions()[0]
+
+			// We know what the result is going to be, assuming the main module is not
+			// empty, (it's the main module itself) but first check to see that there
+			// are packages in the main module, so that if there aren't any, we can
+			// return the expected warning that the pattern matched no packages.
+			match := modload.MatchInModule(ctx, q.pattern, mainModule, imports.AnyTags())
+			if len(match.Errs) > 0 {
+				return pathSet{err: match.Errs[0]}
+			}
+			if len(match.Pkgs) == 0 {
+				search.WarnUnmatched([]*search.Match{match})
+				return pathSet{} // There are no packages in the main module, so the main module isn't needed to resolve them.
+			}
+
+			return pathSet{pkgMods: []module.Version{mainModule}}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 // performPatternAllQueries populates the candidates for each query whose
 // pattern is "all".
 //
diff --git a/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_nopkgs.txt b/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_nopkgs.txt
index 14176a7dc87..e2bfdf30a8d 100644
--- a/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_nopkgs.txt
+++ b/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_nopkgs.txt
@@ -29,6 +29,10 @@ stderr '^go: example\.net/emptysubdir/subdir/\.\.\.: module example\.net/emptysu
 ! go get builtin/...  # in GOROOT/src, but contains no packages
 stderr '^go: builtin/...: malformed module path "builtin": missing dot in first path element$'
 
+cd ../subdirmod
+go get work
+stderr -count=1 'matched no packages'
+
 -- go.mod --
 module example.net/emptysubdir
 
@@ -38,3 +42,7 @@ go 1.16
 package emptysubdir
 -- subdir/README.txt --
 This module intentionally does not contain any p
+-- subdirmod/go.mod --
+module example.net/emptysubdir/subdirmod
+
+go 1.16
diff --git a/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_work.txt b/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_work.txt
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..39c7ea6beba
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_work.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,46 @@
+# Test go get with the work pattern.
+
+# go get work gets dependencies to satisfy missing imports in the
+# main modules' package graph. Before the 'work' pattern existed, users
+# would have to run './...' in the root of the work (main) module.
+cp go.mod go.mod.orig
+go get work
+cmp go.mod go.mod.want
+
+# 'go get work' and 'go get all' behave very differently. Because
+# 'all' evaluates to work packages but also to their dependencies,
+# 'go get all' will run the 'get' logic on all the dependency module
+# packages, bumping all their modules to the latest versions.
+cp go.mod.orig go.mod
+go get all
+cmp go.mod go.mod.all.want
+-- go.mod --
+module example.com/a
+
+go 1.25
+-- go.mod.want --
+module example.com/a
+
+go 1.25
+
+require rsc.io/quote v1.5.2
+
+require (
+	golang.org/x/text v0.0.0-20170915032832-14c0d48ead0c // indirect
+	rsc.io/sampler v1.3.0 // indirect
+)
+-- go.mod.all.want --
+module example.com/a
+
+go 1.25
+
+require rsc.io/quote v1.5.2
+
+require (
+	golang.org/x/text v0.3.0 // indirect
+	rsc.io/sampler v1.99.99 // indirect
+)
+-- a.go --
+package a
+
+import _ "rsc.io/quote"
diff --git a/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_work_incomplete.txt b/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_workspace_incomplete.txt
similarity index 98%
rename from src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_work_incomplete.txt
rename to src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_workspace_incomplete.txt
index ada2ae50f1a..89340ffb573 100644
--- a/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_work_incomplete.txt
+++ b/src/cmd/go/testdata/script/mod_get_workspace_incomplete.txt
@@ -20,6 +20,13 @@ go get ./...
 cmp go.mod go.mod.want
 cmp go.sum go.sum.want
 
+# Test go get with an incomplete module using a "work" query.
+cp go.mod.orig go.mod
+rm go.sum
+go get work
+cmp go.mod go.mod.want
+cmp go.sum go.sum.want
+
 # Test go get with an incomplete module using a path query that can be resolved.
 cp go.mod.orig go.mod
 rm go.sum