as in refused
to show unwillingness to accept, do, engage in, or agree to
I must pass up the offer to be chairman of this event
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Recent Examples of passed up
The year before, she had been passed up for the lead role in the movie adaptation of My Fair Lady, which went to Audrey Hepburn, pictured.
—
Andrea Wurzburger, PEOPLE, 1 Oct. 2025
On both plays, Maye passed up safer choices — taking a sack and a checkdown — to scramble; chasing the type of extended play that had just rewarded him, but ultimately burned his team.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 23 Sep. 2025
Over one in ten report being passed up for a promotion or chance to get ahead because of their age.
—Helen Dennis, Oc Register, 14 Sep. 2025
Silksong just passed up yesterday’s 562,000 concurrent Steam playercount record, a stunning number for a $20 indie game, though obviously boosted by its mythological status after seven years of waiting from fans.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 6 Sep. 2025
He was passed up by most every FBS program coming out of Greenville High in Texas.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 5 Sep. 2025
And with James Beard Award semifinalist Colleen Hughes at the bar, a cocktail or mocktail should not be passed up.
—Heidi Finley, Charlotte Observer, 6 Aug. 2025
Andrea Wurzburger, PEOPLE, 1 Oct. 2025
On both plays, Maye passed up safer choices — taking a sack and a checkdown — to scramble; chasing the type of extended play that had just rewarded him, but ultimately burned his team.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 23 Sep. 2025
Over one in ten report being passed up for a promotion or chance to get ahead because of their age.
—Helen Dennis, Oc Register, 14 Sep. 2025
Silksong just passed up yesterday’s 562,000 concurrent Steam playercount record, a stunning number for a $20 indie game, though obviously boosted by its mythological status after seven years of waiting from fans.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 6 Sep. 2025
He was passed up by most every FBS program coming out of Greenville High in Texas.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 5 Sep. 2025
And with James Beard Award semifinalist Colleen Hughes at the bar, a cocktail or mocktail should not be passed up.
—Heidi Finley, Charlotte Observer, 6 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for passed up
Verb
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In the lead-up to the tournament, Argentina had played a series of friendlies without him, since Valencia refused to release him.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
5 Oct. 2025
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Geri refused to leave the premises, according to authorities, and was arrested without incident.—
Stephen Sorace,
FOXNews.com,
5 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Not in the response from the armed Palestinian group were other provisions detailing Gaza's future, including some Hamas has long rejected.—
Susan Page,
USA Today,
5 Oct. 2025
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Sancho rejected a contract offer at Manchester City to join Dortmund in 2017.—
Liam Tharme,
New York Times,
5 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The carmaker may announce in the coming weeks about $5 billion in fresh money on top of a similar amount earmarked earlier in the year, said the people, who declined to be identified discussing information that’s not public.—
Gabrielle Coppola,
Fortune,
4 Oct. 2025
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But overall crime has declined, including a 30% drop in homicides, the mayor’s office said.—
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy,
USA Today,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Quarterback Drew Allar, the talented running backs and others turned down the NFL.—
Chris Vannini,
New York Times,
5 Oct. 2025
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Netanyahu, meanwhile, stands accused of having repeatedly turned down earlier deals with Hamas to appease extreme elements within his fragile coalition government.—
Romina Ruiz-Goiriena,
USA Today,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Though Brock Purdy threw over 300 yards in his return from injury, the Jaguars' defense caused five turnovers, including a strip sack that sealed the game in the fourth quarter.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The resolution, which passed this week, came weeks after a controversial incident involving a girls' volleyball game.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
8 Oct. 2025
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The state legislature passed the bill in mid-September.—
Sandee LaMotte,
CNN Money,
8 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The litigation in that case resolved hundreds of lawsuits alleging the company ignored red flags while filling prescriptions for opioid pain medication.—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
3 Oct. 2025
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Mun-ju doesn’t plan to fall for San-ho so quickly after her husband’s death, but the heightened emotion of life-or-death situations spur a sizzling chemistry and deep connection that cannot be ignored.—
Kayti Burt,
Time,
3 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Passed up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/passed%20up. Accessed 10 Oct. 2025.
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