A picture of a basketball bouncing, composed of frames taken at different points in the past
Thepast is the set of allevents that occurred before a given point intime.[1] The past is contrasted with and defined by thepresent and thefuture. The concept of the past is derived from the linear fashion in which human observers experience time, and is accessed throughmemory andrecollection. In addition, human beings haverecorded the past since the advent of written language.[2]
In English, the wordpast was one of the many variant forms and spellings ofpassed, the past participle of theMiddle English verbpassen (whence Modern Englishpass), amongypassed,ypassyd,i-passed,passyd,passid,pass'd,paste, etc.[3] It developed into an adjective and preposition in the 14th century, and a noun (as inthe past ora past, throughellipsis with the adjectivepast[4]) in the 15th century.[5][3]
The past continuous tense refers to actions that continued for a period of time, as in the sentence "she was walking," which describes an action that was still happening in a prior window of time to which a speaker is presently referring. The past perfect tense is used to describe actions that were already completed by a specific point in the past. For example, "she had walked" describes an action that took place in the past and was also completed in the past.
The past perfects continuous tense refers to an action that was happening up until a particular point in the past but was completed.[7] It is different from the past perfect tense because the emphasis of past perfect continuous verbs is not on the action having been completed by the present moment, but rather on its having taken place actively over a time period before another moment in the past. The verb tense used in the sentence "She had been walking in the park regularly before I met her" is past perfect continuous because it describes an action ("walking") that was actively happening before a time when something else in the past was happening (when "I met her").
Depending on its usage in a sentence, "past" can be described using a variety of terms.Synonyms for "past" as anadjective include, "former," "bygone," "earlier," "preceding," and "previous." Synonyms for "past" as anoun include, "history, "background," "life story," and "biography." Synonyms of "past" as apreposition include, "in front of," "beyond," "by," and "in excess of."[8]
The word "past" can also be used to describe the offices of those who have previously served in an organization, group, or event such as, "past president," or, "past champions."[9] "Past" can also refer to something or someone being at or in a position that is further than a particular point.[10] For instance, in the sentence, "I live on Fielding Road, just past the train station," the word "past" is used to describe a location (the speaker's residence) beyond a certain point (the train station). Alternatively, the sentence, "He ran past us at full speed," utilizes the concept of the past to describe the position of someone ("He") that is further than the speaker.
The "past" is also used to define a time that is a certain number ofminute before or after a particularhour, as in "We left the party at half-past twelve."[11][9] People also use "past" to refer to being beyond a particularbiological age or phase of being, as in, "The boy was past the age of needing a babysitter," or, "I'm past caring about that problem."[9] The "past" is commonly used to refer to history, either generally or with regards to specific time periods or events, as in, "Past monarchs had absolute power to determine the law in contrast to many European Kings and Queens of today."
Nineteenth-century British authorCharles Dickens[12] created one of the best-known fictionalpersonifications of the "past" in his short book, "A Christmas Carol." In the story, theGhost of Christmas Past is an apparition that shows the main character, a cold-hearted and tight-fisted man namedEbenezer Scrooge, vignettes from his childhood and early adult life to teach him that joy does not necessarily come from wealth.[13]
^Collins, Philip (5 June 2018)."Charles Dickens"(Web).Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc.Archived from the original on 18 June 2018. Retrieved27 August 2018.
^"A Christmas Carol"(Web).Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. 6 June 2014.Archived from the original on 27 August 2018. Retrieved27 August 2018.
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