pasado

Pasado is a Spanish word with several related uses. As an adjective, its meaning centers on temporality: it describes something that has occurred before the present moment or belongs to a former time. It forms masculine past participle agreements with the noun it modifies (pasado, pasados) and feminine forms (pasada, pasadas). Common phrases include el año pasado, la semana pasada, pasado mañana, and la época pasada, where pasado mañ ana refers to the day after tomorrow.

As a noun, el pasado refers to time before the present or to a person’s history. It can denote historical events or one’s personal experiences, as in dejar el pasado atrás (“leave the past behind”). The term also functions in broader cultural or historical discussions to indicate what has already occurred.

As a verb form, pasado is the past participle of pasar and is used with haber to form compound tenses. Examples include ha pasado, hemos pasado, and lo ocurrido en el pasado. In these constructions, pasado carries the sense of something that has already happened.

Etymologically, pasado derives from the Spanish verb pasar, itself from Latin passāre, from passus meaning a step or pace.

See also: past (in linguistics and grammar), past tense, haber + participle constructions in Spanish, and related Romance-language terms such as Portuguese passado.