pasar
to pass
A versatile verb built around the core idea of passing from one point to another
Encoding Strategies:
linguistic
pass
to pass
+
-ar
verb suffix
Pasar means to pass and is a direct cognate of the English word — nearly every sense flows from the core idea of something moving from one point to another.
pasar
to pass, to go by, to go past (movement)
To move past a point, or to cross from one side to another.
- El tren pasó a toda velocidad = The train went by at full speed
- Pasamos el río a pie = We crossed the river on foot
to pass, to hand (to someone)
To pass something from one person to another — like passing the ball or passing the butter.
- Pásame la sal, por favor = Pass me the salt, please
- El jugador le pasó el balón a su compañero = The player passed the ball to his teammate
to pass (an exam or test)
To pass a test or exam — crossing the threshold needed to succeed.
- Pasé el examen de conducir al primer intento = I passed the driving test on the first try
to happen, to occur, to go through
Events come to pass — they happen and move on. When the event is a hardship, you pass through it and endure it.
- ¿Qué pasó? = What happened?
- La familia pasó momentos muy difíciles = The family went through very hard times
to pass, to go by, to spend (time)
Time passes on its own, or you pass time by spending it somewhere or doing something.
- El tiempo pasa muy rápido = Time goes by very quickly
- Pasamos el verano en la playa = We spent the summer at the beach
pasarse
to go too far, to overdo it
The reflexive se turns this back on yourself — you pass your own limit, going beyond what you should.
- ¡Te pasaste! Eso no estuvo bien = You went too far! That wasn't okay
- Me pasé con la sal en la sopa = I overdid it with the salt in the soup
to slip one's mind, to forget, to miss
The se signals the thing did it by itself — it passed on its own (se me pasó = it passed itself by me). You didn't let it slip; it just did, accidentally.
- Se me pasó llamarte = It slipped my mind to call you
- No sé cómo se me pasó ese detalle = I don't know how I missed that detail
to go bad, to go off, to go stale (food)
Like going too far yourself, food can pass its own limit too — it crosses the point of freshness and goes bad.
- El pan se pasó porque lo dejamos afuera = The bread went stale because we left it out
- La fruta se estaba pasando = The fruit was going bad
to pass, to go away (pain or feelings)
Just like someone can "pass away," a feeling passes away on its own — the se signals it moves on by itself, without you doing anything.
- No te preocupes, ya se te pasará el dolor = Don't worry, the pain will pass
- Se me pasó el enojo rápidamente = My anger went away quickly