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Passed vs Past

Passed vs Past
by Ali Hale

Sandi from Inspiration for Writerswrote to ask: Can you do a segment on Past vs. Passed if you havent already? Too many get these words mixed up. Very happy to oblige, Sandi!

Past relates to location

The word past locates something in time, and sometimes in space. It can be used as an adjective, noun, or adverb. Past as an adjective The first definition which the OED gives for past as an adjective is Gone by in time; elapsed; done with; over. For example: The days for mourning are now past. When attributed to a group of people, past can also mean Having served ones term of office; former. (OED) All past presidents of the United States were male. And in grammar, we have more examples of past being used as an adjective, such as in past tense and past participle. Past as a noun The main meaning for the noun form of past, given by the OED, is The time that has gone by; a time, or all of the time, before the present. In the past, standards were higher. We cannot live in the past. Past as a preposition As a preposition, past can mean: Beyond in time; after; beyond the age for or time of; (in stating the time of day) so many minutes, or a quarter or half of an hour, after a particular hour. (OED) It is almost half past five. It can also be used for location: Beyond in place; further on than; at or on the further side of; to a point beyond. (OED) My house is the one just past the turning.
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Passed vs Past

Past as an adverb The first meaning the OED cites for past being used as an adverb is So as to pass or go by; by. For example: The ball sped past the goalkeeper.

Passed a verb in the past tense

Passed is the past participle of the verb to pass. It can be an intransitive verb (one which doesnt require an object) or a transitive verb (one which requires both a subject and one or more objects). To pass means To proceed, move forward, depart; to cause to do this. (OED) This can refer to movement forwards in time, in space, or in life (such as to pass an examination). For example: The weeks passed quickly. (Intransitive: subject the weeks and no object). I passed all my exams! (Transitive: subject I and object my exams.) He passed the ball well during the match earlier. (Transitive: subject He and object the ball.)

When do past and passed get confused?

Often, writers muddle the words past and passed in sentences such as: The heroes passed a village on their way towards the mountains. Its common to see this written as: The heroes past a village on their way towards the mountains. But the word should be passed, as (in this sentence) its the past participle of the verb to pass. An easy way to tell is to rewrite the sentence in the present tense, as though youre describing something which is happening currently: The heroes pass a village on their way towards the mountains. or The heroes are passing a village on their way towards the mountains. However, if you wrote: The heroes walked past a village on their way towards the mountains. Its correct to use past. The verb in this sentence is walked, and the past is acting as an adverb.

Unusual uses of the word passed

Most of the time, passed is a verb, as described above. There are a few occasions when it can
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Passed vs Past

be used as a noun or an adjective, though. For example: Dont speak ill of the passed. (noun) - This comes from the phrase passed-away. A passed pawn (adjective) - Term used in chess. A passed ball (adjective) - Term used in baseball. A passed midshipman/fireman/surgeon (adjective) - Someone who has passed a period of instruction and qualified through examination apparently this usage arose in the navy. Have you come across any other unusual uses? Are there still any cases where youre not sure whether to use passed or past? Share your examples with us in the comments below!

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