- (North American English also after)later than something
- half past two
- ten (minutes) past six
- There's a bus at twenty minutes past the hour (= at 1.20, 2.20, etc.).
- We arrived at two o'clock and left at ten past (= ten minutes past two).
- It was past midnight when we got home.
Homophones passed | pastpassed pastTopics Timea1/pɑːst//pæst/- passed verb (past tense, past participle of pass)
- You've passed all your exams—well done!
- past adjective
- It's arguably the best novel of the past 20 years.
- past noun
- Let's put the past behind us and move on.
- past preposition
- You shouldn't be up—it's past your bedtime!
- on or to the other side of somebody/something
- We live in the house just past the church.
- He hurried past them without stopping.
- He just walked straight past us!
- above or further than a particular point or stage
- Unemployment is now past the 3 million mark.
- The flowers are past their best.
- He's past his prime.
- She's long past retirement age.
- Honestly, I'm past caring what happens (= I can no longer be bothered to care).
Word OriginMiddle English: variant of passed, past participle of pass.
Idioms
See past in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee past in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englishpast it
- (British English, informal) too old to do what you used to be able to do; too old to be used for its normal function
- In some sports you're past it by the age of 25.
- That coat is looking decidedly past it.
Check pronunciation:
past