past 1 of 3

as in history
the events or experience of former times we spent a pleasant evening recalling the past together

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

past

2 of 3

adjective

past

3 of 3

preposition

1
as in over
on or to the farther side of I drive past the school every day

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
as in after
subsequent to in time or order it's ten minutes past six o'clock

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of past
Noun
Bright streaks of material can be seen marking the dark 'lunar seas', created when reflective material was cast far across the lunar surface by cataclysmic asteroid strikes in the distant past. Anthony Wood, Space.com, 11 July 2025 From 1968 to 2013, fewer than 150 people lost their citizenship, mostly war criminals who had hidden their past. Cassandra Burke Robertson, The Conversation, 10 July 2025
Adjective
These are the exact same complaints about the season 1 VIPs, and while there is some speculation this is done on purpose to be campy like past genre films, that does not seem to be the case. Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 28 June 2025 Illinois saw its first human case of West Nile virus a few days ago, according to past reporting. Molly Morrow, Chicago Tribune, 28 June 2025
Preposition
Gasps and applause filled the Paris auction house as the price soared past previous records. Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 10 July 2025 The state will also be tasked with covering between 5% and 15% of benefits residents receive, costs Kentucky has never had to pay before that could rise past $200 million, according to the organization. Lucas Aulbach, The Courier-Journal, 10 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for past
Recent Examples of Synonyms for past
Noun
  • Last weekend’s 4-3 loss to the Houston Dynamo at Snapdragon Stadium may go down as the first gut-punch in franchise history.
    Ryan Finley, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 July 2025
  • The spending reduction amounts to the largest rollback of federal health-care support in history, Levitt said.
    Greg Iacurci, CNBC, 11 July 2025
Adjective
  • However, a lawsuit against the university by three former women's swimmers over their experience in sharing a team with Thomas is still active.
    Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 2 July 2025
  • The 2006 movie was adapted from former Vogue assistant Lauren Weisberger's book of the same name.
    Madison E. Goldberg, People.com, 1 July 2025
Preposition
  • Authorities were coming under scrutiny over whether the camps and residents in places long vulnerable to flooding received proper warning and whether enough preparations were made.
    Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 6 July 2025
  • The airspace over Bedminster is locked down any time Trump is in town.
    Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 6 July 2025
Preposition
  • In a separate post on Instagram, his wife, Kori Green, shared that Green’s brother John, his wife, Julia, and two of their children remain missing after being swept away in flooding in Kerrville, Texas.
    Alli Rosenbloom, CNN Money, 8 July 2025
  • The festival also reinserts a late-summer electronic festival back into the New York City festival schedule after the two-year absence of Electric Zoo, which previously took place on Randall’s Island, but which did not happen in 2024, and is not on the calendar for 2025 after major issues in 2023.
    Katie Bain, Billboard, 8 July 2025
Adjective
  • Difficulty breathing Irregular heartbeat Cardiac arrest (heart attack) Adults 19 and older should not take more than 350 mg of magnesium per day to avoid side effects and reduce the chance of toxicity.10 7.
    Sarah Bence, Verywell Health, 11 July 2025
  • The current challenge to the gondola project is 16 months old and counting.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2025
Preposition
  • Authorities still have not said how many people were missing beyond the children from Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along a river in Kerr County where most of the dead were recovered.
    Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 6 July 2025
  • Some things are beyond the capacity of a child to understand, while others resonate most profoundly out of the mouths of babes.
    Peter Debruge, Variety, 5 July 2025
Adjective
  • But once those issues were resolved, random drop-in visits from Social Services workers over the next decade yielded no citations or other issues.
    Karen Kucher, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 July 2025
  • This is one of the countless reasons the Secret Service prides ourselves on forging and maintaining relationships with other law enforcement agencies.
    Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 12 July 2025
Adjective
  • But the real question is what kind of concrete retribution Trump could try to exact on his erstwhile political ally and campaign donor.
    Alexei Oreskovic, Fortune, 7 July 2025
  • On the way to the Fordyce’s second floor, the erstwhile opulence along Bathhouse Row becomes evident.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 30 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Past.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/past. Accessed 16 Jul. 2025.

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