passing
Americanadjective
-
going by or past; elapsing.
He was feeling better with each passing day.
-
brief, fleeting, or fortuitous; transitory.
to take a passing fancy to something.
-
done, given, etc., in passing; cursory.
a passing mention.
-
surpassing, preeminent, or extreme.
-
indicating satisfactory performance in a course, on a paper, in a test, etc..
a passing grade on a test.
-
living or being known as a member of a racial, religious, or ethnic group other than one's own, especially living and being known as a white person although of Black ancestry.
Employees with a passing racial identity expressed frequent discomfort in the workplace.
-
Sometimes Offensive. being known or perceived as a gender other than the one assigned at birth.
Passing women who dress and live as men have existed throughout history.
The environment might be safer for a passing trans man than for someone who is obviously transgender.
adverb
noun
-
the act of a person or thing that passes or causes something to pass.
-
a means or place of passage.
idioms
adjective
-
transitory or momentary
a passing fancy
-
cursory or casual in action or manner
a passing reference
adverb
noun
-
a place where or means by which one may pass, cross, ford, etc
-
a euphemism for death
-
by the way; incidentally
he mentioned your visit in passing
Other Word Forms
- passingly adverb
- passingness noun
- unpassing adjective
Etymology
Origin of passing
First recorded in 1275–1325; pass + -ing 1 for the noun senses; pass + -ing 2 ( def. ) for the adjective senses
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Inside he found a hidden camera feeding a vast surveillance network that logs the license plate of every driver passing through this stretch of remote backcountry between San Diego and the Arizona state line.
From Los Angeles Times
"Our family is devastated by the sudden passing of our beloved husband, father and grandfather," Sedaka's family posted on his Facebook page, describing him as a "true rock and roll legend."
From Barron's
"Anybody who's passing judgement on the situation needs to watch it first," she says.
From BBC
Vigloo has a conveyor belt-like setup where the screenwriter, director and editor focus only on their job before passing it onto the next person.
From BBC
“Our family is devastated by the sudden passing of our beloved husband, father and grandfather, Neil Sedaka,” the songwriter’s family wrote in a statement to the Times.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
