past

The past refers to all points in time before the present moment. It includes events, actions, and states that have already occurred. The boundary between past, present, and future is a fundamental organizing principle in timekeeping, memory, and discourse.

In language, "past" is used as a grammatical category. Past tense marks actions completed before now; past continuous indicates actions ongoing in the past; past perfect expresses anteriority relative to another past moment. Examples: I walked; I was walking; I had walked.

In history and archaeology, the past is studied through records, artifacts, and testimonies. Historians seek to interpret causes and effects of previous events, often dealing with biases, gaps, and uncertainty. Personal recollections contribute to the sense of the past in daily life.

Philosophical perspectives question how the past relates to the present and future. Presentism holds that only the present exists; eternalism posits that past, present, and future are equally real; some theories propose a growing block where the past and present exist and the future does not. Access to the past is indirect, via memory, record, or physical traces.

In common usage, "the past" also appears in expressions such as "in the past," "past tense," or "past events." The concept is central to historiography, memory studies, and the way cultures narrate identity and change.