Past vs Passed: Difference and Comparison

The homophonesย past and passed are the most perplexing in the English language. Their spellings and meanings, on the other hand, are entirely different.

Key Takeaways

  1. โ€œPastโ€ serves as a noun, adjective, adverb, or preposition, referring to a previous time or beyond something.
  2. โ€œPassedโ€ is the past tense of the verb โ€œto passโ€, indicating movement, completion, or approval.
  3. Context determines the correct usage, with โ€œpastโ€ relating to time or position and โ€œpassedโ€ to actions or events.

Past vs Passed

In the English language, the past describes an elapsed time period. The term also signifies movement from one spot to another. Passed is a verb which is the past tense form of โ€œpassโ€. It relates to a movement that progresses, elapses or passes.

Past vs Passed

It may also be used to describe a time prior to the current time or to indicate when a specific number of minutes have passed after an hour.

The term โ€˜passedโ€™ is essentially the past tense of โ€˜pass,โ€™ which has a variety of meanings in the English language. However, it is generally used to indicate that something has passed, elapsed or ended, or been cleared.

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Comparison Table

Parameters of ComparisonPastPassed
MeaningWe can utilize โ€œpastโ€ to describe anything that has already happened, finished, or is no longer happening.When anything passes, elapses, succeeds, or progresses, we use the word passed. ย 
Part of speechIt can be used as Adjective, Noun, Adverb, and Preposition. ย The term passed can be used as Verb.
Related toIt is related to Time.It is related to Movement
Example 1Janeโ€™s experience in marriage was not so good.More than one hour has passed.
Example 2Weโ€™ll meet on November 29, 2018, at twenty past three.Diya passed the sheets to me.

What is Past?

A noun, an adverb, or a preposition can all be used with the word โ€œpast.โ€ Its most well-known definition pertains to the passage of time.

In a grammatical context, โ€œpastโ€ can also be used in this way. The term โ€œpast tenseโ€ is one of the most prevalent grammatical errors.

โ€œPastโ€ can relate to both time and direction as a preposition, and it signifies โ€œafterโ€ (possibly ironically, given its noun and adjective forms refer to the time that has passed!).

Take a look at the following sentences:

He never did that in the past.

The past events shook his life.

past

What is Passed?

The word โ€œpassedโ€ is a verb. Itโ€™s a variation of the verb โ€œto pass.โ€ Itโ€™s theโ€ฆpast tense form, at the risk of adding to the confusion. โ€œPassโ€ may relate to a variety of things, and you would say โ€œpassedโ€ if any of them happened in the past.

In the context of time, โ€œpassโ€ can also indicate โ€œto go byโ€: โ€œTime passed slowly while I waited.โ€ It may also refer to giving something to someone else: โ€œAfter she had eaten some of the potatoes, my mother handed them to me.

It might refer to getting a good grade on something: โ€œI got my driverโ€™s license yesterday!โ€. When lawmakers accept a measure, it is said to be โ€œpassed.โ€ โ€œThis historic bill was recently passed by the House of Representatives.โ€

I passed the book to my friend.

She passed her intermediate with distinction.

She passed her sister without looking.

She moved past her sister without looking.

The word past is employed as an adverb in the second phrase to support the verb moved. This is because the word past has no meaning as a verb. It must always be combined with another verb.

passed

Main Differences Between Past and Passed

  1. Past cannot be used as a verb since it is a noun. The past tense of the verb past is passed.
  2. Past is also an adverb that requires the presence of a verb. Passed, on the other hand, maybe used as a verb in phrases.
Difference Between Past and Passed
References
  1. https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jog.14546
  2. https://link.springer.com/article/10.3758/s13428-013-0434-y

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