I. ˈpas, ˈpaa(ə)s, ˈpais, ˈpȧs verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: Middle English passen, from Old French passer, from (assumed) Vulgar Latin passare, from Latin passus step — more at pace
intransitive verb
1.
a. : to move on : proceed
from group to group the girls pass , laughing, prattling — Lafcadio Hearn
b. : to proceed to a specified place or destination
the excess nitrogen passes rapidly into the capillaries — H.G.Armstrong
could pass again into his neutral, godlike independence — R.W.Emerson
all that lives must die, passing through nature, to eternity — Shakespeare
c. : to proceed along a specified route : take a particular course
the blood passes through the lungs — H.G.Armstrong
passes between the rolling slopes — American Guide Series: Arkansas
passed freely along the great caravan routes — H.J.J.Winter
d. : to go on with a narrative or discussion
we pass down the centuries to Anselm — H.O.Taylor
before I pass to other matters — J.M.Wordie
2.
a. : to go away from a place, object, or person : depart , leave
the fright passes almost immediately — Fred Majdalany
b. : to depart from life : die
every morning I pray God to let me pass — Virginia Woolf
when she passed there were editorials about her — New York Herald Tribune Book Review
— often used with on
3.
a. : to go by or move past
the wind passed again blowing up dust and rain — Greville Texidor
the mail passed twice a week — John Burroughs
the remark passed unnoticed — T.B.Costain
b. : to glide by : elapse
could not let this moment pass without a few words of explanation — Gwyn Thomas
poetical works conceived in the spirit of the passing time — Matthew Arnold
c. : to come to an end or finish : terminate
the strangeness of his life passed, and he began to feel what this city was — Pearl Buck
aid … could not be given before the crisis had passed — C.L.Jones
d. : to move past another vehicle going in the same direction : overtake
do not pass on the right
no passing permitted
4.
a. : to go or make way through : secure a passage through
guarded the door and permitted no one to pass
better than ordinary glass, since they allowed the sun's actinic rays to pass — American Guide Series: Michigan
b. : to go uncensured or unchallenged : take place or come to view without hindrance or opposition
if malice and vanity wear the coat of philanthropy, shall that pass — R.W.Emerson
such behavior cannot pass in a schoolroom
c. : to go through a duct or the intestines
5.
a. : to move or be transferred from one place to another
from the college he passed to the novitiate of the order — American Guide Series: Maryland
was first a stock clerk, passed from that to other service departments — Current Biography
b. : to go from one quality, state, condition, or form to another
a good player on a modern pianoforte can pass at will … from an almost inaudible softness to a thundering loudness — R.V.Williams
pass from relaxation and refreshment back to the routine of life's clamant duties — W.F.Hambly
passes from a liquid to a gaseous state
c. : to go from one stage of development to another
pass … imperceptibly from youth to age — D.H.Barber
passed … from a primitive, prehistoric stage … to the more advanced civilized state — David Bidney
d. : to go from one activity to another
passed from the study of physiology to the study of psychology — A.N.Whitehead
6.
[Anglo-French passer, literally, to proceed, from Old French]
a. of a jury
(1) : to sit in inquest — used with on or upon
(2) : to sit in adjudication — usually used with between
b. : to become rendered, given, or done in legal procedure
judgment passed for the defendant
c.
(1) : to render a verdict or judgment : pass sentence : adjudicate — usually used with on or upon
the court did not pass on the constitutional question
the jury found it difficult to pass upon the case because of the conflicting testimony
(2) : to give judgment : render an opinion or express a point of view — used with on or upon
our concern here is not to pass upon the merits of a particular controversy — R.M.Weaver
d. of a juryman : serve , sit — used with on or upon
7.
a. : to undergo conveyance or transfer (as by will, deed, or other instrument of conveyance) so as to become vested in another
sold the house … the title passed this afternoon — J.C.Lincoln
b. : to go from the control or possession of one person, group, or country to that of another
the throne passed to Darius the Great — W.K.Ferguson
the institution passed from parish to state control — American Guide Series: Louisiana
8.
a. : to take place : happen , occur
commenting freely on the transactions as they pass — W.L.Sperry
b. : to take place as a mutual exchange or transaction (as speech, letters, or lovemaking)
what hath passed between me and Ford's wife — Shakespeare
words passed and then blows
c. : to come and go in consciousness : exist as ideas or sensations
no one could tell what was passing within his mind
visions of the future passed through his mind
9.
a. : to secure the allowance or approval of a legislature or other body that has power to sanction or reject a bill or proposal
the tax bill passed by a slim majority
the proposal to change the date of the dance passed by unanimous vote of the class council
b. : to attain the required grade or level of achievement in an examination or course of study
took the scholarship examination and passed
did badly in the course and barely passed
c. : to go through an inspection or test successfully : achieve acceptance
in a day when much that is careless and slipshod passes in the name of realism — Sara H. Hay
boatmen's skirts with blue stripes and a crew neck pass nicely too — Horace Sutton
10.
a. : to go from one person to another : be current : circulate
bank notes pass so long as nobody refuses them — William James
b. : to become falsely held, regarded, or identified — usually used with as or for
pass in society not for the person you are, but as a labeled dummy — Stuart Chase
the doggerel verse that passed as poetry — American Guide Series: Minnesota
passed for being a very devoted couple — Mary Deasy
c. : to serve as a substitute — usually used with for
dreary lines of shell-like hovels that pass for dwellings — American Guide Series: Virginia
that awful jargon that passes for English — John Hilton
d. : to identify oneself or accept identification as a white person though having some Negro ancestry
the heroine who has been passing in the North, comes home to the South … to live among and learn to love her people — Commentary
11.
a. obsolete : to make a pass in fencing
you but dally, I pray you pass with your best violence — Shakespeare
b. : to execute a pass (as in football, basketball, or hockey)
the situation called for a kick but he decided to pass
12.
a.
(1) : to decline to bid, double, or redouble in a card game (as in bridge)
(2) : to withdraw from the current poker pot : throw up one's hand (as in poker)
(3) : to transfer a card to another player
b. : to make a winning cast or roll with dice
transitive verb
1.
a. : to go beyond in some degree, measure, or quality : surpass
the reviews of a few dramatic critics pass all others in the influence they have
used to be the largest city in the state, but has now been passed by several others
b. : to advance or develop beyond
had passed the barbaric stage when they invaded Chaldea — Edward Clodd
c. : to go beyond (a mark or limit)
his drive to provide planetariums for the millions passed several important milestones — S.M.Spencer
those who pass 90 begin to think about reaching 100 — Morris Fishbein
this information will never pass my lips
d. : to go past : leave behind in running or racing : outstrip
passed the other runners in the homestretch
e. : to go beyond or transcend the range or limitations of : exceed
so new to our experience that it passes comprehension — Saturday Review
2.
a. : to go by : proceed or extend beyond
passes the school on his way to work
an avenue that passes several large churches — American Guide Series: Arkansas
b.
(1) obsolete : neglect , omit
could not pass admiring the great church — John Evelyn
(2) : to omit a regularly scheduled declaration and payment of (a dividend)
c. : to leave out in an account or narration
pass the trivial details and get to the heart of the story
3.
a. : to go from one side to the other of : proceed across, over, or through : cross , traverse
pass the straits and conquer the mountains — Walt Whitman
nevermore did either pass the gate — Alfred Tennyson
b. : to go or live through : have experience of : endure , suffer , undergo
she loved me for the dangers I had passed — Shakespeare
c. : to cause or permit to elapse : abide the passage of : spend
you may pass half an hour pleasantly, even profitably, over an article of his — R.L.Stevenson
passed the summer at the beach
pass his life in study
4.
a. : to secure the approval or sanction of : gain the acceptance of
the bill passed the senate
b. : to go through successfully or satisfactorily : attain the required standard in : satisfy the requirements of
passed the bar examination
had passed a security check — Time
5.
a. obsolete : to carry through to completion : execute , finish
where he might hear his father pass the deed — Ben Jonson
b.
(1) : to cause or permit to proceed : cause or permit to win approval or legal or official sanction : confirm , endorse
the legislature passed the bill
the committee passed the nomination
(2) : to approve as valid, correct, or proper : authorize
gave his work perfunctory attention and passed it without effort or interest — E.T.Bell
always passed the final page proofs of the paper personally — Times Literary Supplement
c. : to let go unnoticed : pass over : overlook
his commander quietly passed his likes or dislikes — George Meredith
d. : to cause or allow to pass an examination or course of study
the examiner passed him on his written test but failed him on his road test
the professor passed most of his students
6.
a. : pledge
had passed his word that he would repay the debt
b. : to transfer the right or property in : make over
pass the title to an estate
7.
a. : to place in circulation : give currency to
passed a counterfeit ten-dollar bill
caught passing bad checks
passes malicious gossip about her neighbors
b. : to transfer from one person to another : cause to go from hand to hand
pass the jug
please pass the salt
the problem of passing prosperity around — Elmer Davis
signed the attendance sheet and passed it on
c. : to cause or make possible to go or proceed : transfer from one place to another : convey , transport
waited till the soldiers and wounded were all passed over — Walt Whitman
d. : to cause to move in a particular manner or direction or over a specified place or area
passed his hand over his face
passed the cloth over the top of the desk
e.
(1) : to take a turn with (a line) and make secure
pass a line around a sail in furling
(2) : to take a turn with (a rope or string) around something
passed a rope around the tree
f. : to transfer to another player on the same team
passed the ball to the left end
passed the puck to his teammate
g. : throw
they'd pass a ball back and forth or play jackstones — Dorothy C. Fisher
8.
a. : to pronounce judicially
passed sentence on the convicted man
b. : to give voice to : pronounce , utter
passing a word now and again with the man on the other side of the marble-topped table — Nevil Shute
passes some practical remarks on the present standard locomotive designs — British Book News
9.
a. : to cause or permit to go past or through a barrier : cause or allow to gain entrance
b. : to cause to march or go by in order
the general passed his troops in review
passes rapidly in review the various forms of association between human beings — Times Literary Supplement
10. : to emit or discharge from the bowels or other part of the body : evacuate , void
11.
a. : to permit (a batter in baseball) to reach first base by giving a base on balls
b. : to send a ball in a racket game to the side and out of reach of (an opponent)
12.
a. : to decline to bid or bet on (one's hand) in a card game
b. : to transfer (a playing card) to another player
13. : to take (a bull's charge) with a movement of a cape
•
- pass current
- pass in one's checks
- pass muster
- pass the buck
- pass the chair
- pass the hat
- pass the time of day
II. noun
( -es )
Etymology: Middle English pass, pas, from Old French pas, from Latin passus step — more at pace
1. : an opening, road, channel, or other way that is the only means by which a barrier may be passed or access gained to a particular place: as
a.
(1) archaic : road , route
(2) : a narrow place in a road or street
b.
(1) : a break in a mountain range : an opening between two peaks usually approached by a steep valley
has the lowest altitude of the three main passes across the Cascades — American Guide Series: Washington
— compare col , defile , gap , notch
(2) : a narrow road between a mountain and a sea
the Pass of Thermopylae
c.
(1) : a place or policy that controls the defense of a country
believe that the government sold the pass when it abandoned its ally
(2) : a position that must be maintained usually against odds
our few repertory companies have held the pass — Report: (Canadian) Royal Commission on National Development
d.
(1) : a navigable channel in a delta
attempts were made to increase the depth of the passes by dredging with buckets — American Guide Series: Louisiana
(2) : a narrow opening between two islands or through an obstruction (as a reef) : strait
when the engine that propelled us through the pass had ceased its clatter, we lay, sails set, rocking in the swell — Ida Treat
(3) : a stretch of open water in a marsh
e.
(1) : a crossing over a river
(2) : a passage for fish over a dam
2. : a chute from one level of a mine to another
3. : an aperture formed between two grooved rolls in a rolling mill through which a bar of metal is passed to be shaped
4. : duck pass
Synonyms: see way
III. noun
( -es )
Etymology: partly from Middle English passe, from Middle French, from passer to pass; partly from pass (I) — more at pass I
1.
a. : the act or an instance of passing : passage
charming the narrow seas to give you gentle pass — Shakespeare
b. archaic : death
2. : accomplishment , realization
the boy's dream comes to pass — R.W.Emerson
plot and plan and bring to pass — Robert Browning
3. : a usually difficult, dangerous, or unfortunate condition or state of affairs
things had come to a pretty pass when nobody would work for him any more
a strange pass
a terrible pass
4.
a. : a written permission to move about freely in a particular area or place or to leave or enter its boundaries or limits
under its provisions vagrancy was no more an offence, and … folk were free to move without passes — C.W. de Kiewiet
obtained a pass to any port of the Low Countries — Margaret Toynbee
b. : a written leave of absence from a military post or station for a brief period
if only all of life could be a three-day pass — James Jones
c. : a written permission to enter an area or place closed to the general public (as an army post or defense establishment)
d. : a permit, ticket, or order allowing one free transportation (as on a railroad) or free admission (as to a theater)
has a season pass to the ball park
— called also free pass
5. : a thrust or lunge in fencing
6.
a. : a transference of objects by sleight of hand or other deceptive means
one of the most difficult passes for the amateur magician to make
b. : a gesture or movement of the hands of a juggler or magician
would make passes before the picture, finally making the gesture of picking a grape off the canvas — Victoria Sackville-West
c. : a shifting of the position of the cards in card tricks
it takes practice to learn to make the pass
d. : a moving of the hands over or along something : manipulation
a recalcitrant mechanism responded almost instantly to two or three passes of his hands — Ben Riker
7. archaic : a witty or ingenious sally or stroke
a curious pass of wit — William Hazlitt
8. : the passing of an examination or course of study ; also : the mark or certification of such passing
the examiners may award a pass with distinction to any candidates who have attained a sufficiently high standard in all subjects — Durham University Cal.
a pass mark
a pass grade
9. : a single complete mechanical operation: as
a. : a single passage of a bar, rail, or sheet between the rolls of a rolling mill
b. : a single or multiple passage of the gases from the furnace across the tubes of a steam boiler
c. : a single progression along a joint in welding
d.
(1) : a single passage of one or more cards through a punched-card machine
(2) : a single sorting or arranging operation with hand-notched punched cards
10.
a. : a transfer of a ball (as in football or basketball) or a puck (as in hockey) from one player to another player on the same team
threw a long pass into the corner
threw a pass the length of the court
b. : pass stroke
c. : a passing stroke in tennis
11. : base on balls
12.
a. : a refusal to bid, bet, or draw an additional card in a card game
b. : an election not to bid, double, or redouble in bridge
c. : a transfer of a playing card to another player
13. : a cast or combination of dice that wins the main bet
14. : a single passage or movement of an airplane or other artificial flying object over a given area or place or in the direction of a given target
made several low passes over the field so the ground crew could inspect the wheel by searchlight — Time
made seven passes at that gun, each time dropping one bomb — Ira Wolfert
the satellite will make its first pass over the eastern half of the country at 4 a.m.
15.
a. : effort , try
guessed wrong on the crime the first time they made a pass at it — Erle Stanley Gardner
told me in French, after a few unsuccessful passes in other languages — A.J.Liebling
b. : a sexually inviting gesture or approach
was always accusing her of making passes at other men — Time
a girl must be able to recognize a pass — Bernard De Voto
16. : pase
makes his passes with a stylized, classical grace that catches crowds by the throat — John Stanton
Synonyms: see juncture
IV. abbreviation
1. passage
2. passenger
3. passim
4. passive