Past vs Passed

[AnyaKimlin]

I just can't get my head round how to use past/passed - I keep reading about it and forgetting when it comes to writing. Any help appreciated because I'd like to not have to rearrange sentences so I don't have to use it.

 

[Hex]

Well, "passed" is longer -- so "he passed the tree" takes time (long, see?) compared to "past", which is shorter because he was already past it.

Um. Does that make sense to anyone but me?

(does that make sense to me...?)

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I do it - he walked past it - where walk carries the -ed action

As opposed to

He passed it - where pass carries the action.

Which may make no more sense than Hex's, although in her examples I'd use the same one.

I think it's time for Super Polar Bear, or the Scales of Justice.

 

[AnyaKimlin]

This was the sentence that kicked off my query:

A familiar figure in burka, pushing a pram, walked past.

Is this correct?

 

[Ursa major]

Yes, it's correct, because the main verb in that sentence is walked.



Passed is (part of**) a verb and is used where one would use a verb:

He passed by on the other side of the street.
His time has passed
​

Past is either a noun

The past is gone; we must look to the future
​

an adjective

Past copies of the paper are kept at the library
​

an adverb

I saw him walk past on the other side of the street
​

or a preposition (meaning beyond)

It is now past lunchtime.

​

I've underlined the verb in the various examples.



** - Passed can be either the past tense, or the past participle, of the verb, to pass, as seen in the two examples above.

 

[Hex]

Yes.

If you use springs' system, it's the "walk" that's carrying the action/ the -ed whatever.

Otherwise you'd say: A familiar figure in burka, pushing a pram, passed.

 

[Nerds_feather]

What Ursa said. Basically "passed" is a verb (technically a form or participle of a verb) and "past" is anything but a verb.

Thus "passed" always denotes action.

 

[chrispenycate]

We did this somewhere. 'Passed' is the imperfect or past participle of a verb, to pass:- he passed past the past glories.

Always a verb, with a subject, (time passed) and quite often an object (he passed the finishing line), defining what has been passed. It's logical; there is a verb 'to pass', and it takes an 'ed', as a majority of regular verbs, to produce a past participle, or an imperfect form.

"Past", on the other hand, can be a noun (the past), an adjective (their past glories), or a preposition (he walked past), but never a verb. The prepositional form might be a bit confusing, but if he 'walked past the finishing line' rather than passing it it's fairly clear that walking is the verb – isn't it?

So, that's all there is to it. The past tense (adjective) of the verb 'to pass', involves 'passed', and the rest is past, which has a range of meanings and uses:- he's past it, I do not try to live down my past, past attempts to explain this problem have evidently failed.

 

[AnyaKimlin]

Ahh now that is starting to make sense --- can't promise I won't be asking again. My brain seems to scream with this one. So basically treat passed as a verb and past as more an adverb/adjective?

 

[Mirannan]

Never mind - other people's explanations were much better.

 

[Bowler1]

I'm tripping over this one as well, Anya, but thankfully I have a good beta. Hex's version/rule made sense to me.

Simple rules for simple heads - Have I mentioned RAY GUNS?

 

[Mouse]

I thought I knew, but I know I queried one in springs's WiP the other day and as she sounds like she knows what she's talking about, I'm now wondering if I've not got a clue!

I use whatever sounds right. And with my accent past/passed sound pretty much the same.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I thought I knew, but I know I queried one in springs's WiP the other day and as she sounds like she knows what she's talking about, I'm now wondering if I've not got a clue!

I use whatever sounds right. And with my accent past/passed sound pretty much the same.

No, you kept the past the same - you wanted pushed past instead of whatever x past I had. I just checked.