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pas·sage¹

(păsĭj)

1. The act or process of passing, especially:

a. Movement from one place to another: the passage of water through a sieve.

b. The process of elapsing: the passage of time.

a. The process of changing from one condition or stage to another; transition: the passage from childhood to adulthood.

b. Enactment into law of a legislative bill.

a. A journey, especially one by air or water: We had a rough passage on the stormy sea.

b. The right to travel as a passenger, especially on a ship: book passage; pay for one's passage.

c. The right, permission, or power to come and go freely: Only medical supply trucks were granted safe passage through enemy territory.

a. A path, channel, or duct through, over, or along which something may pass: the nasal passages.

b. A corridor.

a. An occurrence or event: "Another encouraging passage took place ... when heads of state ... took note of the extraneous factors affecting their economies that are beyond their control" (Helen Kitchen).

b. Something, such as an exchange of words or blows, that occurs between two persons: a passage at arms.

a. A segment of a written work or speech: a celebrated passage from Shakespeare.

b. Music A segment of a composition, especially one that demonstrates the virtuousity of the composer or performer: a passage of exquisite beauty, played to perfection.

c. A section of a painting or other piece of artwork; a detail.

7. Physiology The process of discharging something from a bodily part, such as evacuation of waste from the bowels.

8. Medicine The introduction of an instrument into a bodily cavity.

9. Obsolete Death.

[Middle English, from Old French, from passer, to pass; see PASS.]

pas·sage²

(păsĭj, pə-säzh)

A slow cadenced trot in which the horse raises and returns to the ground first one diagonal pair of feet, then the other.

v. pas·saged, pas·sag·ing, pas·sag·es

v.intr.

To execute such a trot in dressage.

v.tr.

To cause (a horse) to execute such a trot in dressage.

[French, from passager, to execute a passage, alteration (influenced by passer, to pass) of passéger, from Italian passeggiare, from passare, to pass, from Vulgar Latin *passāre, from Latin passus, step; see PACE¹.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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