What does "passage" mean?
A paragraph or section of text or music with particular meaning.
Passage
/ˈpæsɪd͡ʒ/ adj, name, noun, verb
adj, name, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A paragraph or section of text or music with particular meaning.
- Grammar: passage is listed as adj, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: passageway, about face, about-face, abysm.
- Useful contrasts: baffle, bar, barrera.
- Usage evidence: Can you get at the meaning of this passage?
How to use "passage"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "passage" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "passage" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "passage" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "passage" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "passage" is acting as adj, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "passageway" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "passage", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A paragraph or section of text or music with particular meaning.
"passage of scripture"
- 2 A movement in classical dressage, in which the horse performs a very collected, energetic, and elevated trot that has a longer period of suspension between each foot fall than a working trot.
- 3 the act of passing from one state or place to the next wordnet
- 4 Part of a path or journey.
"He made his passage through the trees carefully, mindful of the stickers."
- 5 a journey usually by ship wordnet
Show 21 more definitions
- 6 An incident or episode.
"But there are those who do not feel that the sordid passages of life should be kept off the stage. It is a matter of opinion."
- 7 the act of passing something to another person wordnet
- 8 The official approval of a bill or act by a parliament.
"The company was one of the prime movers in lobbying for the passage of the act."
- 9 a bodily reaction of changing from one place or stage to another wordnet
- 10 The advance of time.
"The passage of decades has not erased the value of parental monitoring."
- 11 the passing of a law by a legislative body wordnet
- 12 The use of tight brushwork to link objects in separate spatial plains. Commonly seen in Cubist works.
- 13 a way through or along which someone or something may pass wordnet
- 14 A passageway or corridor.
- 15 a path or channel or duct through or along which something may pass wordnet
- 16 A strait or other narrow waterway.
"the Northwest Passage"
- 17 a section of text; particularly a section of medium length wordnet
- 18 An underground cavity, formed by water or falling rocks, which is much longer than it is wide.
- 19 a short section of a musical composition wordnet
- 20 The vagina. euphemistic
"With a look of triumph that he was unable to keep from his dark eyes he slid into her passage with one smooth thrust, […]"
- 21 the motion of one object relative to another wordnet
- 22 The act of passing; movement across or through.
"He claimed that he felt the passage of the knife through the ilio-cæcal valve, from the very considerable pain which it caused."
- 23 The right to pass from one place to another.
- 24 A fee paid for passing or for being conveyed between places.
- 25 Serial passage.
- 26 A gambling game for two players using three dice, in which the object is to throw a double over ten. historical
Verb
- 1 To pass something, such as a pathogen or stem cell, through a host or medium.
"He passaged the virus through a series of goats."
- 2 To execute a passage movement. intransitive
"After a spring or two, the horse passaged and reared, and lighting on a flat slab of rock which cropped up in the middle of the road, slipped sideways and fell with a loud crash […]"
- 3 To make a passage, especially by sea; to cross. rare
"They passaged to America in 1902."
Adjective
- 1 Of a bird: Less than a year old but living on its own, having left the nest. attributive, not-comparable
"Passage red-tailed hawks are preferred by falconers because these younger birds have not yet developed the adult behaviors which would make them more difficult to train."
Proper Noun
- 1 Ellipsis of Passage West, Ireland. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Can you get at the meaning of this passage?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "passage"?
Common synonyms include: passageway, about face, about-face, abysm, abyss, academic text.
How do you use "passage" in a sentence?
Can you get at the meaning of this passage?
How do you pronounce "passage"?
Pronounced /ˈpæsɪd͡ʒ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Borrowed into Middle English from Old French passage, from passer (“to pass”).
Etymology 2
From French passager, from Italian passeggiare.