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Glite Dictionary
➡️ To pass by 🏆 To surpass
to go past

to go past

2 3.5
Be better than a limit or what people expected
  • phrasal verb
  • /ɡoʊ pæst/
translation icon : superar
  • You said, has psychology and the social sciences gone past the period of big thinkers?

Any sexual act that has gone past what has been consented to.

Examples

  • Go past the rules, go past the dogma, go past the interpretations, and go right to the root of those teachings.

  • And so I'm just like, wow, we we've gone past just money to integrity.

  • - Uncle Eddie never went past the fifth grade.

    For the Boys (1991)

  • Go past the rules, go past the dogma, go past the interpretations, and go right to the root of those teachings.

  • And when you track our stats right now, my point is that I think we've gone past the optimum point already.

  • Is there a sort of a level that you shouldn't go past that constitutes, say, reckless driving?

  • Whether we've gone past major tipping points like Greenland is no longer stoppable.

  • After months of hard work, Sarah managed to go past her previous best time in the marathon.

  • The company's profits for this quarter go past all expectations set at the beginning of the year.

  • With her latest painting, Julia has finally gone past her usual style and created something truly innovative.

Synonyms

to exceed
vsto go past
255 4.1

To be greater than a set amount or beyond what people expect

is about being superior to a standard or expectation rather than only quantity
to go beyond
vsto go past
201 3.6

To exceed a limit or what people expect

is used for being superior to a set expectation rather than only measured limits
to top
vsto go past
146 2.4

To be better than others in a contest or ranking

is about being superior to a standard rather than being first among others
to pass
vsto go past
107 3.4

To be better than a set standard

expresses this in a more general way of being better than the standard
to transcend
vsto go past
  • Formal
101 6.8

To go beyond a limit or expectation

is focused on being superior to a particular standard rather than broad or abstract qualities
to surpass
vsto go past
100 4.6

To be better than another person or thing

focuses on being superior to a particular standard or expectation
to outstrip
vsto go past
7 6.8

To become faster, better, or larger than another

focuses on being superior to a set standard rather than speed or pace

Antonyms

to fall short
64 3.9

Fail to reach the level people expect

to underperform
20 5.3

To do worse than expected or needed

How Much

to eclipse
31 6.0
to exceed
255 4.1
to go past
2 3.5
to meet
660 1.3

Surface Forms

go past infinitive
went past past
gone past past participle
going past present participle
goes past third person singular

Morphology

go + past

The meaning 'to move beyond or pass by' is directly and transparently derivable from combining 'go' (to move) with 'past' (indicating motion by or beyond something). This follows a standard motion verb + preposition/particle pattern that is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will readily understand the MWE.

Etymology

Go past comes from the image of crossing a finish line or a set mark. If someone runs right past the line, they go beyond what was expected, so go past means 'to surpass' or 'exceed'.