The word pass has several common meanings:

1. To move by, through, or beyond something. You pass other cars on the highway, pass through a doorway, or pass a landmark on your way to school. Time passes as minutes turn to hours. Seasons pass as summer becomes fall.
2. To succeed at meeting a required standard. When you pass a test, you've scored well enough to succeed. When a law passes in Congress, enough members voted yes for it to become official. The opposite is to fail.
3. To hand something to someone. You might pass the salt at dinner or pass a note to your friend (though your teacher probably wouldn't approve). In basketball, you pass the ball to a teammate instead of shooting.
4. To choose not to do something or participate. In a card game, you might pass on your turn. When offered dessert, you could say “I'll pass” if you're not hungry.

The word appears in many phrases: a mountain pass is a route through mountains, while a hall pass gives you permission to leave class. If you pass out, you faint. Something that happens in passing happens briefly or casually. When someone dies, we sometimes say they have passed away.