diff --git a/.golangci.yml b/.golangci.yml
index 9ccc39b8e206..c6548a3abe0a 100644
--- a/.golangci.yml
+++ b/.golangci.yml
@@ -12,7 +12,6 @@ linters:
     - unparam
     - lll
     - maligned
-    - nakedret
     - errcheck
     - scopelint
     - varcheck
diff --git a/baseapp/abci.go b/baseapp/abci.go
index d2fc35e84770..4fa777d3abc8 100644
--- a/baseapp/abci.go
+++ b/baseapp/abci.go
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ func (app *BaseApp) InitChain(req abci.RequestInitChain) (res abci.ResponseInitC
 
 	// NOTE: We don't commit, but BeginBlock for block 1 starts from this
 	// deliverState.
-	return
+	return res
 }
 
 // Info implements the ABCI interface.
@@ -137,7 +137,7 @@ func (app *BaseApp) BeginBlock(req abci.RequestBeginBlock) (res abci.ResponseBeg
 
 	// set the signed validators for addition to context in deliverTx
 	app.voteInfos = req.LastCommitInfo.GetVotes()
-	return
+	return res
 }
 
 // EndBlock implements the ABCI interface.
diff --git a/client/context/context.go b/client/context/context.go
index 18f50240d4b6..398b8c908340 100644
--- a/client/context/context.go
+++ b/client/context/context.go
@@ -241,8 +241,11 @@ func (ctx CLIContext) WithBroadcastMode(mode string) CLIContext {
 // PrintOutput prints output while respecting output and indent flags
 // NOTE: pass in marshalled structs that have been unmarshaled
 // because this function will panic on marshaling errors
-func (ctx CLIContext) PrintOutput(toPrint fmt.Stringer) (err error) {
-	var out []byte
+func (ctx CLIContext) PrintOutput(toPrint interface{}) error {
+	var (
+		out []byte
+		err error
+	)
 
 	switch ctx.OutputFormat {
 	case "text":
@@ -257,11 +260,11 @@ func (ctx CLIContext) PrintOutput(toPrint fmt.Stringer) (err error) {
 	}
 
 	if err != nil {
-		return
+		return err
 	}
 
 	fmt.Println(string(out))
-	return
+	return nil
 }
 
 // GetFromFields returns a from account address and Keybase name given either
diff --git a/server/util.go b/server/util.go
index 20eecfe154d3..3926a37f4e68 100644
--- a/server/util.go
+++ b/server/util.go
@@ -113,7 +113,7 @@ func interceptLoadConfig() (conf *cfg.Config, err error) {
 	viper.SetConfigName("app")
 	err = viper.MergeInConfig()
 
-	return
+	return conf, err
 }
 
 // add server commands
diff --git a/store/iavl/store.go b/store/iavl/store.go
index 4a9f0957fec9..f7e603962de6 100644
--- a/store/iavl/store.go
+++ b/store/iavl/store.go
@@ -300,7 +300,7 @@ func (st *Store) Query(req abci.RequestQuery) (res abci.ResponseQuery) {
 		return serrors.ErrUnknownRequest(msg).QueryResult()
 	}
 
-	return
+	return res
 }
 
 //----------------------------------------
diff --git a/store/types/utils.go b/store/types/utils.go
index 2abd6db62b07..0c45933ed4a9 100644
--- a/store/types/utils.go
+++ b/store/types/utils.go
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ func DiffKVStores(a KVStore, b KVStore, prefixesToSkip [][]byte) (kvAs, kvBs []c
 			kvBs = append(kvBs, kvB)
 		}
 	}
-	return
+	return kvAs, kvBs
 }
 
 // PrefixEndBytes returns the []byte that would end a
diff --git a/tests/gobash.go b/tests/gobash.go
index 02a113574237..29a703479ee3 100644
--- a/tests/gobash.go
+++ b/tests/gobash.go
@@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ func ExecuteT(t *testing.T, cmd, input string) (stdout, stderr string) {
 	stdout = strings.Trim(string(outbz), "\n")
 	stderr = strings.Trim(string(errbz), "\n")
 
-	return
+	return stdout, stderr
 }
 
 // Execute the command, launch goroutines to log stdout/err to t.
diff --git a/x/auth/client/cli/decode.go b/x/auth/client/cli/decode.go
index 3f706647899c..3d8fa1f3ceca 100644
--- a/x/auth/client/cli/decode.go
+++ b/x/auth/client/cli/decode.go
@@ -11,13 +11,6 @@ import (
 	authtypes "github.com/cosmos/cosmos-sdk/x/auth/types"
 )
 
-// txDecodeRespTx implements a simple Stringer wrapper for a decoded StdTx.
-type txDecodeRespTx authtypes.StdTx
-
-func (tx txDecodeRespTx) String() string {
-	return tx.String()
-}
-
 // GetDecodeCommand returns the decode command to take Amino-serialized bytes
 // and turn it into a JSONified transaction.
 func GetDecodeCommand(codec *amino.Codec) *cobra.Command {
@@ -39,7 +32,7 @@ func GetDecodeCommand(codec *amino.Codec) *cobra.Command {
 				return err
 			}
 
-			return cliCtx.PrintOutput(txDecodeRespTx(stdTx))
+			return cliCtx.PrintOutput(stdTx)
 		},
 	}
 
diff --git a/x/auth/client/cli/encode.go b/x/auth/client/cli/encode.go
index 508a8eae8647..304411dba8a1 100644
--- a/x/auth/client/cli/encode.go
+++ b/x/auth/client/cli/encode.go
@@ -46,9 +46,7 @@ If you supply a dash (-) argument in place of an input filename, the command rea
 			txBytesBase64 := base64.StdEncoding.EncodeToString(txBytes)
 
 			response := txEncodeRespStr(txBytesBase64)
-			cliCtx.PrintOutput(response) // nolint:errcheck
-
-			return nil
+			return cliCtx.PrintOutput(response)
 		},
 	}
 
diff --git a/x/auth/simulation/genesis.go b/x/auth/simulation/genesis.go
index 39906df7f91f..3a92a98b69d3 100644
--- a/x/auth/simulation/genesis.go
+++ b/x/auth/simulation/genesis.go
@@ -124,5 +124,5 @@ func RandomGenesisAccounts(simState *module.SimulationState) (genesisAccs export
 		genesisAccs = append(genesisAccs, gacc)
 	}
 
-	return
+	return genesisAccs
 }
diff --git a/x/distribution/keeper/querier_test.go b/x/distribution/keeper/querier_test.go
index b4a5d8e7d044..2a2d1455f9db 100644
--- a/x/distribution/keeper/querier_test.go
+++ b/x/distribution/keeper/querier_test.go
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ func getQueriedParams(t *testing.T, ctx sdk.Context, cdc *codec.Codec, querier s
 	require.Nil(t, err)
 	require.Nil(t, cdc.UnmarshalJSON(bz, &withdrawAddrEnabled))
 
-	return
+	return communityTax, baseProposerReward, bonusProposerReward, withdrawAddrEnabled
 }
 
 func getQueriedValidatorOutstandingRewards(t *testing.T, ctx sdk.Context, cdc *codec.Codec, querier sdk.Querier, validatorAddr sdk.ValAddress) (outstandingRewards sdk.DecCoins) {