passante

Passante is a term used in Italian and Portuguese with several related meanings. Etymology: it derives from the Latin passans, the participle of passare meaning to pass or go through.

In everyday language, passante most commonly refers to a person who passes by or walks past a place; a passerby. In Italian, un passante describes someone who is nearby on the street, and the word is used in news, literature, and casual speech. The Portuguese equivalent um passante has a similar sense.

In fashion, leatherwork, and garment making, passante denotes a small loop or ring through which a belt, cord, or strap is threaded. It is used on belts, bags, jackets, and shoes to secure or guide straps and laces.

In infrastructure and urban planning, passante is used to describe through routes, bypasses, or through passages in transport networks. In Italian contexts, passante ferroviario or passante stradale can refer to a railway line or road designed to carry through traffic around a city center, rather than directly through it. The term is used more broadly in Portuguese as well to denote similar through connections in transportation planning.

Overall, passante conveys the core idea of something that passes by, through, or along a path, with the specific sense depending on context—including a person encountered on a street, a functional loop in an item of clothing, or a through transport route.