past

English

Wikipedia

Pronunciation

• (UK) enPR: päst, IPA: /pɑːst/, X-SAMPA: /pA:st/
• (US) IPA: /pæst/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Homophone: passed
• Rhymes: -æst, -ɑːst

Etymology

From Middle English, past participle of passen (“to pass, to go by”), whence Modern English pass.

Noun

past (plural pasts)

1. The period of time that has already happened, in contrast to the present and the future.
2. (grammar) The past tense.

Derived terms

Terms derived from the noun "past"

blast from the past in the past past anterior past continuous past historic past participle

past perfect past progressive past simple past tense simple past

Translations

period of time that has already happened

• Arabic: (indefinite) ماضٍ (ar) (māḍin) m, (definite) الماضي (ar) (al-māḍiyy) m
• Belarusian: мінулае (be) (minúlaje) n
• Bulgarian: минало (bg) (minálo) n
• Burmese: ရှေး (my) (she:)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 過去 (cmn), 过去 (cmn) (guòqu)

• Czech: minulost (cs) f
• Dutch: verleden (nl) n
• Esperanto: estinteco (eo)
• Finnish: menneisyys (fi)
• French: passé (fr) m
• Georgian: please add this translation if you can
• German: Vergangenheit (de) f
• Greek: παρελθόν (el) (parelthón) n
• Hebrew: עבר (he) (avar) m
• Hindi: अतीत (hi) (atīt)
• Hungarian: múlt (hu)
• Interlingua: passato (ia)
• Italian: passato (it) m
• Japanese: 過去 (ja) (かこ, kako)
• Korean: 과거 (ko) (gwageo) (過去 (ko))
• Lao: ອາດີດ (lo) (ādīt)

• Latvian: pagātne (lv) f
• Macedonian: минато (mk) (minato) n
• Maltese: passat (mt) m, passata (mt) f
• Norwegian: fortid (no)
• Persian: گذشته (fa) (gozašte)
• Polish: przeszłość (pl) f
• Portuguese: passado (pt) m
• Romanian: trecut (ro) n
• Russian: прошлое (ru) (próšloje) n, былое (ru) (bylóje) n
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: прошлост (sh) f

  Roman: prošlost (sh) f

• Slovak: minulosť (sk) f
• Slovene: preteklost (sl) f
• Spanish: pasado (es) m
• Swedish: förflutna (sv)
• Telugu: పూర్వం (te) (poorvam), గతం (te) (gatam)
• Thai: อดีต (th) (adèet)
• Turkish: geçmiş (tr)
• Ukrainian: минуле (uk) (mynúle) n
• Vietnamese: quá khứ (vi) (過去 (vi))

(grammar) past tense

• Arabic: (indefinite) ماضٍ (ar) (maaDin) m, (definite) الماضي (ar) (al-maaDiy) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 過去時態 (cmn), 过去时态 (cmn) (guòqù shítài), 過去時 (cmn), 过去时 (cmn) (guòqùshí)

• Dutch: verleden tijd (nl) m
• Finnish: imperfekti (fi)
• French: passé (fr) m
• German: Vergangenheit (de) f
• Greek: αόριστος (el) (aóristos) m
• Hebrew: עבר (he) (avar) m
• Hungarian: múlt idő (hu)
• Italian: passato (it) m
• Japanese: 過去時制 (ja) (かこじせい, kako-jisei), 過去形 (ja) (かこけい, kakokei)
• Korean: 과거형 (ko) (gwageohyeong)

• Latvian: pagātne (lv) f
• Maltese: passat (mt)
• Norwegian: preteritum (no)
• Polish: czas przeszły (pl)
• Portuguese: pretérito (pt) m
• Romanian: trecut (ro) n
• Russian: прошедшее время (ru) (prošédšeje vrémja) n
• Serbo-Croatian: prošlo vreme (sh)
• Slovene: preteklik (sl) m
• Spanish: pretérito (es) m
• Telugu: గతించిన (te) (gatimcina), జరిగిన (te) (jarigina), భూతకాలము (te) (bhutakalamu)
• Turkish: geçmiş zaman (tr)

See also

• preterite

Adjective

past (comparative more past, superlative most past)

1. Having already happened; in the past; finished. [from 14th c.]
   • 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 7, The China Governess^[1]:

     The highway to the East Coast which ran through the borough of Ebbfield had always been a main road and even now, despite the vast garages, the pylons and the gaily painted factory glasshouses which had sprung up beside it, there still remained an occasional trace of past cultures.

   past glories

2. (postmodifier) Following expressions of time to indicate how long ago something happened; ago. [from 15th c.]
   • 1999, George RR Martin, A Clash of Kings, Bantam 2011, p. 538:

     That had been, what, three years past?

   • 2009, John Sadler, Glencoe, Amberley 2009, p. 20:

     Some four decades past, as a boy, I had a chance encounter and conversation with the late W.A. Poucher [...].

3. Of a period of time: having just gone by; previous. [from 15th c.]

   during the past year

   • 2012 April 23, Angelique Chrisafis, “François Hollande on top but far right scores record result in French election”, The Guardian:

     Sarkozy's total will be seen as a personal failure. It is the first time an outgoing president has failed to win a first-round vote in the past 50 years and makes it harder for Sarkozy to regain momentum.

4. (grammar) Of a tense, expressing action that has already happened or a previously-existing state. [from 18th c.]

   past tense

Translations

having already happened; in the past

• Czech: minulý (cs)
• Dutch: voorbij (nl), voorbije (nl), afgelopen (nl)
• Finnish: mennyt (fi)
• French: passé (fr) m, passée (fr) f
• German: vergangen (de)
• Greek: περασμένος (el) (perazménos) m, παρελθών (el) (parelthón) m, πρότερος (el) (próteros) m, πρωτύτερος (el) (protíteros) m, τα περασμένα (el) (ta perazména) n pl
• Italian: passato (it)
• Jèrriais: pâssé

• Korean: 지나간 (ko) (jinagan)
• Latvian: pagājis (lv)
• Maltese: passat (mt) m, passata (mt) f
• Portuguese: passado (pt)
• Romanian: trecut (ro) m and n, trecută (ro) f
• Russian: прошлый (ru) (próšlyj)
• Serbo-Croatian: prošli (sh) m, prošla (sh) f, próšlo (sh) n
• Telugu: పూర్వపు (te) (poorvapu), జరిగింది (te) (jarigimdi)
• Turkish: geçmiş (tr)

ago — see ago

of a period of time: having just gone by

• Czech: minulý (cs)
• Dutch: voorbij (nl), voorbije (nl)
• Finnish: viime (fi)
• French: dernier (fr) m, dernière (fr) f, passé (fr) m, passée (fr) f
• Greek: περασμένος (el) (perazménos) m, παρελθών (el) (parelthón) m, πρώην (el) (próin) m, τέως (el) (téos) m, πρότερος (el) (próteros) m, πρωτύτερος (el) (protíteros) m

• Korean: 이전의 (ko) (ijeon-ui)
• Serbo-Croatian: prošli (sh) m, prošla (sh) f, próšlo (sh) n
• Telugu: గత (te) (gata)
• Turkish: geçen (tr), geçtiğimiz (tr), önceki (tr)

grammar: expressing action that has already happened

• Czech: minulý (cs)
• Dutch: voorbij (nl), voorbije (nl), verleden (nl)
• Finnish: mennyt (fi)
• French: passé (fr) m, passée (fr) f
• Greek: παρελθοντικός (el) (pareltho[n]dikós) m
• Italian: passato (it)

• Jèrriais: pâssé
• Korean: 과거의 (ko) (gwageo-ui)
• Romanian: (de/despre) trecut (ro)
• Serbo-Croatian: prošli (sh) m, prošla (sh) f, próšlo (sh) n
• Telugu: గతకాలం (te) (gatakalamu)

Adverb

past (comparative more past, superlative most past)

1. in a direction that passes

   I watched him walk past

Translations

in a direction that passes

• Dutch: voorbij (nl)
• Finnish: ohi (fi)
• Greek: επέκεινα (el) (epécina), πέρα (el) (péra)

• Russian: мимо (ru) (mímo)
• Scottish Gaelic: seachad (gd)
• Telugu: పోయింది (te) (poyindi)

Preposition

past

1. beyond in place, quantity or time

   the room past mine

   count past twenty

   past Midnight

   • 2012 April 22, Sam Sheringham, “Liverpool 0-1 West Brom”, BBC Sport:

     But they were stunned when Glen Johnson's error let in Peter Odemwingie to fire past Pepe Reina on 75 minutes.

Usage notes

• The preposition past is used to tell the time. The time 5:05 is said as five past five. 5:10 as ten past five. 5:15 as quarter past five. 5:20 as twenty past five. 5:25 as twenty-five past five. 5:30 as half past five. If we are aware of the approximate time, we can just use e.g. five past, ten past etc. See the example below.

  I thought it was about six o'clock, but it was actually ten past.

• Compare with to (five to, ten to, quarter to, twenty to, twenty-five to)
• See also: o'clock

Translations

beyond in place

• Dutch: voorbij (nl), verder (nl)
• Finnish: jälkeen (fi); yli (fi) (in expressions of time)
• French: après (fr)
• German: vorbei (de)
• Greek: πέρα (el) (péra)

• Irish: tar éis (ga), i ndiaidh (ga)
• Norwegian: forbi (no), bortenfor (no)
• Scottish Gaelic: seach (gd), an dèidh (gd)
• Telugu: వెనుక (te) (venuka)

Related terms

• past master
• past it

Statistics

• Most common English words before 1923: six · comes · stand · #496: past · suppose · else · entered

Anagrams

• APTS, pats, spat, stap, taps

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Czech

Pronunciation

• IPA: /past/
• Rhymes: -ast

Noun

past f

1. trap (a device designed to catch and sometimes kill animals)

   past na myši — mousetrap

Declension

    declension of past

	singular	plural
nominative	past	pasti
genitive	pasti	pastí
dative	pasti	pastem
accusative	past	pasti
vocative	pasti	pasti
locative	pasti	pastech
instrumental	pastí	pastmi

Derived terms

• pastička

See also

• léčka
• záloha
• nástraha
• úskalí

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Dutch

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɑst
• IPA: /pɑst/

Verb

past

1. second- and third-person singular present indicative of passen
2. plural imperative of passen

Anagrams

• spat, stap, taps

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Slovene

Noun

past f

1. trap