- 1the past [singular] the time that has gone by; things that happened in an earlier time I used to go there often in the past. the recent/distant past She looked back on the past without regret. Writing letters seems to be a thing of the past.
- 2[countable] a person's past life or career We don't know anything about his past. They say she has a “past” (= bad things in her past life that she wishes to keep secret).
- 3the past [singular] (grammar) = past tense Idioms
a person or thing from your past that you see, hear, meet, etc. again in the present
a long time ago stories from the distant past In the distant past this land was covered in forests.
to behave as though society, etc. has not changed, when in fact it has
Check pronunciation: past