Confused and Misused Words - Passed v Past

Passed (verb) – past simple and past participle of pass

Ø      Daniel was delighted when he passed his driving test.

Ø      When I asked to speak to Gary, Tim passed (= gave) the phone to me reluctantly.

Ø      To be honest, we were a little worried about the exhibition yesterday. Fortunately, the evening passed (= went by) without any great disaster.

Past

1.  referring to time

Ø     In the past decade, I’ve travelled to more than 15 countries.

2.  referring to position

Ø     I live on Kings Street, just past the elementary school.

Ø     Sally was so engrossed with a workout that she completely missed us as she jogged past us at the park.