en passant
- idiom
- /ɑ̃ pɑˈsɑ̃/
:
de pasada
- He criticized the policy en passant, without making it the focus of his argument.
Examples
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The professor noted en passant that the topic would appear on the exam.
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She mentioned, en passant, that she had visited Paris last year.
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He mentioned the project en passant during the meeting.
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Did you hear her comment en passant?
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The author referenced a famous painter en passant while discussing the influence of art on literature.
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She noted en passant that the event would start at noon, but didn't go into detail.
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During his lecture, the scientist mentioned en passant that climate change could impact local wildlife.
Synonyms
448
1.5
To introduce a new topic that is not directly related
159
4.8
To add extra information not directly related
27
3.8
While mentioning something briefly without giving it much attention
1
9.0
To say something extra that is not about the main topic
Briefly and only a little for a short time
Antonyms
How Central
27
3.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
en + passant
This is a French chess term (a loan phrase) whose constituents are not English words for most learners, so a B1 learner who knows English vocabulary will not be able to derive the technical capture rule from 'en' and 'passant'. Even if someone recognised the literal French sense ('in passing'), that literalness does not fully convey the specialized chess rule, so the meaning is not transparently recoverable from the parts.
Etymology
En passant comes from a French phrase meaning 'in passing'. Imagine someone walking by and making a quick remark without stopping — that's why it means 'incidentally' or 'as a side remark'.