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passage

passage

133 4.3
Official approval of a law, rule, or document
  • noun
  • /ˈpæsɪdʒ/
  • Formal
translation icon : aprobación
  • The passage of same sex marriage in New York was made possible again only by the votes of four state Republican senators.
  • passage of the bill
  • passage of laws
  • passage of legislation

And when the final vote happened, we were two votes short of passage.

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Examples

  • The more interesting reform came two years later with the passage of the 2005 NDAA.

    Academic text (2017)
  • We need a guarantee of safe passage for the president.

  • I have booked passage on a cargo ship bound for England.

  • Unfortunately, rights were not necessarily granted to every person in America after the passage of the Fourteenth Amendment.

    Academic text (2017)
  • Mr. Chairman, I urge passage of the Lindbergh Law... ...making kidnapping a federal offense.

  • We guarantee safe passage... a private jet... before anyone even realizes you've left the country.

  • In the years following the passage... of the National Prohibition Act of 1920... the nation's underworld rises to power and battles amongst itself... just as modern nations and corporations do.

  • The passage of the new tax law was celebrated by many citizens who felt it would benefit the economy.

  • After much debate, the committee approved the passage of the environmental protection bill.

  • The swift passage of the education reform legislation surprised analysts who expected significant opposition.

Synonyms

clearance
vspassage
  • Formal
223 4.4

Official permission to enter a place or take an action

focuses on approval or transfer rather than only permission
delivery
vspassage
  • Formal
122 2.3

Giving someone the legal right to own something like a house

stresses official approval or formal transfer rather than simple giving
handing over
vspassage
13 2.7

Giving something to another person and making them responsible for it

is formal approval or transfer rather than casual personal giving
enactment
vspassage
  • Formal
9 6.1

The process of making a law official by a government body

is broader, covering formal approval or transfer of documents or acts
transmittal
vspassage
  • Formal
1 7.5

To send something, often a document, from one person or place to another

involves formal approval or transfer instead of mere sending

Antonyms

180 3.0

Not being accepted by people or a group

45 3.0

A feeling that shows you do not agree with someone or what they do

Compounds

A ceremony that marks an important change in a person's life, for example becoming an adult

A sea route through the Arctic along the north coast of North America that links the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans

air passage
  • Specialized
1 3.5

A channel that moves air in or out of places like buildings and mines

A long water route along the coast for boats from Seattle to Skagway, protected by islands

A person who moves from place to place and does not settle

A bird that travels to another region each year

7.2

A less-used hallway at the back of a building that people use for private or service access

musical passage
  • Specialized
3.7

A short part of a piece of music with its own sound or idea

A protected water route along the coast of southeastern Alaska used by ships and boats

purple passage
  • Literature
9.3

A part of writing that uses too many fancy words

A narrow sea channel between eastern Cuba and western Haiti that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Caribbean Sea

Surface Forms

passage singular
passages plural

Morphology

passage = pass (transparent) = pass + age

The sense denotes the act or result of 'passing' (e.g., a law being passed), a direct nominalization with '-age'.

Etymology

Passage comes from the old verb pass and the French passer, meaning 'to pass' or 'go through'. So the passage of a law is its being officially 'passed' or moved through the process and approved.