past
Definitions
The time that has already gone by; former times.
过去；往昔。
Gone by in time; former.
过去的；以前的。
Beyond in time or position; further than.
（时间上）过了；（位置上）经过，越过。
So as to pass from one side to the other.
经过地。
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedpast is literally the old past participle of pass — 'having passed.' Time that has passed by is 'the past'; events that have passed are 'past events'; and 'past the shop' means having moved by it. The single idea 'passed' explains all four parts of speech.
Root pass still carries 14 more wordsCommon Collocations
- 1.the past过去
- 2.in the past在过去
- 3.past tense过去式
- 4.over the past few years在过去几年里
- 5.half past（几点）半
Example Sentences
- 1.
We shouldn't dwell on the past too much.
- 2.
Over the past few weeks, sales have improved.
- 3.
The bakery is just past the traffic lights.
- 4.
It's half past seven; we should leave now.
Easily Confused
past vs passed — passed is only the verb (a form of pass): she passed the exam, he passed me the ball. past is everything else: noun (the past), adjective (past events), preposition (walk past). If you can replace it with 'went by/through,' use passed; otherwise use past.