: 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
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
Nick Kosmider, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
The second-year quarterback was 19-of-30 with 174 passing yards.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2025
Fluto Shinzawa, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
The team is also facing a very competitive passing offense with Jaxson Dart and the Giants.
—James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for passing
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show current usage.
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Noun
The Jets had a franchise-worst minus-10 net passing yards, as the 55 yards’ worth of sacks for Denver pulled New York, which got only 45 yards passing from Fields, into the red.
—Nick Kosmider, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
The second-year quarterback was 19-of-30 with 174 passing yards.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2025
Adjective
Minten thought about feeding his teammate, but saw Sam Rinzel’s stick occupying the passing lane.
—Fluto Shinzawa, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
The team is also facing a very competitive passing offense with Jaxson Dart and the Giants.
—James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for passing
Cite this Entry
“Passing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/passing. Accessed 14 Oct. 2025.
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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