to pass by

Examples

• All

• I'm back in Philadelphia on business, and I was passing by the old place.

  Fiction book (1990)

• There, they happened to pass by a couple with a crying toddler in a stroller.

  Fiction book (1991)

• And people would pass by and see me and her.

• And think about the number of people that pass by you every single day.

• Our only hope is that they pass us by.

  The Last of the Mohicans (1992)

• 'After lunch, I happened to pass by the hospital.

  Brief Encounter (1945)

• No, they pass me by.

  Donnie Brasco (1997)

• Fortunately, two boys happened to pass by and took Koistinen to the hospital.

  Academic text (2017)

• We'd be fools to let[br]happiness pass us by.

  Sleepless in Seattle (1993)

• As we walked through the park, countless joggers would pass by us without a second glance.

Synonyms

P

to pass

vsto pass by

∞ 1.0

To move past something or someone

is narrower, concentrating only on passing by without stopping

G

to go by

vsto pass by

133 1.0

To move past someone or something

is the same meaning, describing movement past without stopping

R

to run by

vsto pass by

84 1.0

To pass close to a person or place while moving quickly on foot

describes the same non stopping motion but without the fast on foot focus

W

to walk past

vsto pass by

69 1.0

To go past something on foot without stopping

is general and covers movement on any mode, not only on foot

G

to go past

vsto pass by

16 1.0

Move by someone or something without stopping

focuses on passing by without stopping rather than moving beyond other senses

R

to run past

vsto pass by

13 1.3

To move quickly past someone or let a chance go by without acting

covers passing without stopping but not specifically rapid movement

S

to slip by

vsto pass by

11 3.8

To go past quickly without anyone noticing, as with time or chances

focuses on physical movement past someone without stopping, not time

B

to brush by

vsto pass by

3 5.2

To move past a person or thing very close without stopping

is similar but lacks the emphasis on very close proximity

Z

to zip by

vsto pass by

• Informal

3 3.6

To pass very quickly, as when a car goes by or time moves fast

is about passing without stopping but not necessarily at great speed

W

to whisk by

vsto pass by

1 5.1

Move past someone or something very quickly and smoothly

means passing without stopping but lacks the smooth, graceful speed

S

to sidle past

vsto pass by

1 7.9

To move sideways past someone quietly without being noticed

describes passing without stopping but not the sideways, stealthy manner

Antonyms

S

stop

310 1.0

An act when something ends or pauses

H

to halt

206 2.4

To stop moving or make something stop moving

How Fast

to run past

13 1.3

to rush

548 1.0

to hurry

∞ 1.0

to pass by

165 1.2

to walk past

69 1.0

to creep

155 2.5

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology