: the act of one that passes or causes to pass
especially
: death sense 1a
1
: going by or past
a passing pedestrian
2
: having a brief duration
a passing whim
3
obsolete
: surpassing
4
: superficial
a passing acquaintance
a passing resemblance
5
a
: of, relating to, or used in or for the act or process of passing
passing lanes
b
: given on satisfactory completion of an examination or course of study
a passing grade
: to a surpassing degree : exceedingly
passing strange
Synonyms
Noun
- curtains
- death
- decease
- demise
- dissolution
- doom
- end
- exit
- expiration
- expiry
- fate
- grave
- great divide
- passage
- quietus
- sleep
Adjective
- brief
- deciduous
- ephemeral
- evanescent
- flash
- fleeting
- fugacious
- fugitive
- impermanent
- momentary
- short-lived
- temporary
- transient
- transitory
Adverb
- achingly
- almighty
- archly
- awful
- awfully
- badly
- beastly
- blisteringly
- bone
- colossally
- corking
- cracking
- damn
- damned
- dang
- deadly
- desperately
- eminently
- enormously
- especially
- ever
- exceedingly
- exceeding
- extra
- extremely
- fabulously
- fantastically
- far
- fiercely
- filthy
- frightfully
- full
- greatly
- heavily
- highly
- hugely
- immensely
- incredibly
- intensely
- jolly
- majorly
- mightily
- mighty
- monstrous [chiefly dialect]
- mortally
- most
- much
- particularly
- rattling
- real
- really
- right
- roaring
- roaringly
- seriously
- severely
- so
- sore
- sorely
- spanking
- specially
- stinking
- such
- super
- supremely
- surpassingly
- terribly
- that
- thumping
- too
- unco
- uncommonly
- vastly
- very
- vitally
- way
- whacking
- wicked
- wildly
Examples of passing in a Sentence
Noun
After her husband's passing, she moved to a smaller house.
We all mourned his passing.
Adjective
Someone called out from a passing car.
She sells flowers to passing motorists.
Let's hope that these shoes are just a passing fad.
a passing phase in childhood
Adverb
a passing strange turn of events
Recent Examples on the Web
Gabrielle Rockson, Peoplemag, 4 Apr. 2024
However, something deep within me shifted and awakened after my mother’s sudden passing in 2022.
—Essence, 28 Mar. 2024
Following his passing, the set became a massive commercial success, and in the weeks since, it’s continued to perform well.
—Hugh McIntyre, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
Jewish Federations mourn his passing, and our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time.
—Melissa Gaffney, ABC News, 27 Mar. 2024
After the passing of House BIll 1325 in Texas, delta-9 products that do not exceed 0.3 percent were made legal in the state.
—Candi Bolden, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Mar. 2024
They're also associated with some major religious events, including the darkness that accompanied Jesus’ crucifixion in Christianity and, in Islam, the passing of the Prophet Muhammad’s son, Ibrahim.
—Detroit Free Press, 25 Mar. 2024
In Christianity, an eclipse has been associated with the darkness that accompanied Jesus' crucifixion and in Islam, the passing of the Prophet Muhammad's son Ibrahim.
—Joel Shannon, USA TODAY, 27 Mar. 2024
Despite the fact that Charles’s grandfather, King George VI, died of lung cancer, there was no mention of it in his death announcement, nor was it made public when it was first detected in the months preceding his passing.
—Hayley Maitland, Vogue, 22 Mar. 2024
Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Mar. 2024
His 1998 and 1997 seasons are first and second place, respectively, for most passing yards by a Kentucky player in a season.
—The Courier-Journal, 8 Jan. 2024
The full-court press that usually fuels the Buckeyes didn't give the Gophers much trouble, but those quick hands in the passing and dribbling lanes sure did.
—Dave Campbell, USA TODAY, 9 Feb. 2024
Both teams bring high-powered passing games, but San Francisco, led by All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey, was tied for first in rushing touchdowns (27) in the league.
—Kurt Snibbe, Orange County Register, 5 Feb. 2024
In Arizona's win over Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl, Fifita passed for 354 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, the second-most passing yards in a bowl game in program history.
—Matthew Self, The Arizona Republic, 21 Jan. 2024
And with every passing year—with wildfires, superstorms, tornadoes and demand from the Global South in international frameworks and institutions to be treated as a partner on par with the Global North—companies must look to authentic environmental and social business models.
—Wayne Elsey, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024
With each passing year, more young women discover the film and dress up as Jennifer Check for Halloween.
—Keaton Bell, Vogue, 9 Feb. 2024
During the passing period, Mark never hesitates to greet our students with development disabilities with a hello or a handshake.
—Shari Rudavsky, The Indianapolis Star, 29 Jan. 2024
Noun
In a new interview with the Daily Mail, the former NFL player, 40, said that he’s been left in shock after the passing of his 35-year-old brother and fellow football pro Vontae Davis on Monday.
—Gabrielle Rockson, Peoplemag, 4 Apr. 2024
However, something deep within me shifted and awakened after my mother’s sudden passing in 2022.
—Essence, 28 Mar. 2024
Following his passing, the set became a massive commercial success, and in the weeks since, it’s continued to perform well.
—Hugh McIntyre, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
Jewish Federations mourn his passing, and our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time.
—Melissa Gaffney, ABC News, 27 Mar. 2024
After the passing of House BIll 1325 in Texas, delta-9 products that do not exceed 0.3 percent were made legal in the state.
—Candi Bolden, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Mar. 2024
They're also associated with some major religious events, including the darkness that accompanied Jesus’ crucifixion in Christianity and, in Islam, the passing of the Prophet Muhammad’s son, Ibrahim.
—Detroit Free Press, 25 Mar. 2024
In Christianity, an eclipse has been associated with the darkness that accompanied Jesus' crucifixion and in Islam, the passing of the Prophet Muhammad's son Ibrahim.
—Joel Shannon, USA TODAY, 27 Mar. 2024
Despite the fact that Charles’s grandfather, King George VI, died of lung cancer, there was no mention of it in his death announcement, nor was it made public when it was first detected in the months preceding his passing.
—Hayley Maitland, Vogue, 22 Mar. 2024
Adjective
The Guest continues to increase its cult status with each passing year, and Stevens and Wingard, as well as writer Simon Barrett, have fielded countless requests for a sequel ever since.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Mar. 2024
His 1998 and 1997 seasons are first and second place, respectively, for most passing yards by a Kentucky player in a season.
—The Courier-Journal, 8 Jan. 2024
The full-court press that usually fuels the Buckeyes didn't give the Gophers much trouble, but those quick hands in the passing and dribbling lanes sure did.
—Dave Campbell, USA TODAY, 9 Feb. 2024
Both teams bring high-powered passing games, but San Francisco, led by All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey, was tied for first in rushing touchdowns (27) in the league.
—Kurt Snibbe, Orange County Register, 5 Feb. 2024
In Arizona's win over Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl, Fifita passed for 354 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, the second-most passing yards in a bowl game in program history.
—Matthew Self, The Arizona Republic, 21 Jan. 2024
And with every passing year—with wildfires, superstorms, tornadoes and demand from the Global South in international frameworks and institutions to be treated as a partner on par with the Global North—companies must look to authentic environmental and social business models.
—Wayne Elsey, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024
With each passing year, more young women discover the film and dress up as Jennifer Check for Halloween.
—Keaton Bell, Vogue, 9 Feb. 2024
During the passing period, Mark never hesitates to greet our students with development disabilities with a hello or a handshake.
—Shari Rudavsky, The Indianapolis Star, 29 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'passing.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near passing
Cite this Entry
“Passing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/passing. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
passing
1 of 2 noun
pass·ing
ˈpas-iŋ 
1
: the act of one that passes or causes to pass
2
passing
2 of 2 adjective1
: going by or past
the passing crowd
2
: lasting only for a short time
3
: used for the act or process of passing
the passing lane
4
: given on satisfactory completion of an examination or course of study
a passing grade
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