[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/passed.html)

[home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [dictionaries](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/) / [The school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/) / passed

[← P](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/P/)

# passed

«passed» in Mova's school dictionary: **went past; moved by something** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

verb (pass, passes, passed, passing); also adjective (passed)

### meaning for a pupil

1) (literal) went past; moved by something. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#m1)

2) (literal) succeeded in a test or exam. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#m2)

3) (literal) gave something to someone (passed the salt). [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#m3)

4) (euphemism, polite, mostly US) died (short for passed away). [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#m4)

5) (literal) time went by. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#m5)

### sense in the lessons

In the death sense, Americans especially say «he passed» to talk about death gently; in all other senses it is an everyday verb. Everyday register; the death sense is polite, mainly USA, now spreading.

### examples

- We passed the school on the way home. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#x1)
- She passed her maths test! [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#x2)
- Can you pass the salt, please? [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#x3)
- His dad passed when he was little. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#x4)
- Three hours passed before the rain stopped. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#x5)
- Grandma passed peacefully in her sleep. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#x6)
- He passed the ball to his teammate. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#x7)
- Many years passed by after this. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/#x8)

### note

Do not confuse «passed» (verb) with «past» (noun, adjective, preposition: in the past, walked past). «He passed» alone can mean died — check the context before saying «Congratulations!». Plain word for the death sense: died.

### In the corpora

- [A story passed from person to person is like a snowball rolling downhill: it picks up bits on the way.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/42-our-street-feuds-newcomers-and-stories-that-grow/0/)
- [A rumour is a story passed around without proof; it is not a fact just because many people repeat it.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/arts/6-charts-number-ones-and-famous-musicians-as-public-record/13/)
- [A habit learned from others and passed on is a small piece of culture.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/387-clever-primates-tool-using-chimps-kanzi-the-bonobo-and-ayumu-s-memory/4/)
- [And a body part that is stretched or hurt during a life is never passed on.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/404-the-real-animals-of-the-just-so-stories-whale-camel-rhino-leopard-elephant-kangaroo-armadillo-crab/4/)
- ["Passed away" means died; it is the polite, kind word.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/1-death-polite-and-joking/5/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «passed» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/passed/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.
