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Spend vs. Pass — What's the Difference?

Spend vs. Pass — What's the Difference?

Difference Between Spend and Pass

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Spend

To use up or put out; expend
Spent an hour exercising.

Pass

To move on or ahead; proceed
The train passed through fields of wheat.

Spend

To pay out (money).

Pass

To extend; run
The river passes through our land.

Spend

To wear out; exhaust
The storm finally spent itself.
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Pass

To move by or in front of something
The band passed and the crowd cheered.

Spend

To pass (time) in a specified manner or place
Spent their vacation in Paris.

Pass

To move past another vehicle
The sports car passed on the right.

Spend

To throw away; squander
Spent all their resources on futile projects.

Pass

To gain passage despite obstacles
Pass through difficult years.

Spend

To give up (one's time or efforts, for example) to a cause; sacrifice.

Pass

To move past in time; elapse
The days passed quickly.

Spend

To pay out or expend money.

Pass

To be transferred from one to another; circulate
The wine passed around the table.

Spend

To be exhausted or consumed.

Pass

(Sports) To transfer a ball or puck to a teammate.

Spend

An amount of money spent on something
Doubled the spend on computers.

Pass

To be communicated or exchanged between persons
Loud words passed in the corridor.

Spend

The spending of money; expenditure
The management of spend.

Pass

To be transferred or conveyed to another by will or deed
The title passed to the older heir.

Spend

(ambitransitive) To pay out (money).
He spends far more on gambling than he does on living proper.

Pass

To undergo transition from one condition, form, quality, or characteristic to another
Daylight passed into darkness.

Spend

To bestow; to employ; often with on or upon.

Pass

To come to an end
My anger suddenly passed. The headache finally passed.

Spend

(dated) To squander.
To spend an estate in gambling

Pass

To cease to exist; die. Often used with on
The patient passed on during the night.

Spend

To exhaust, to wear out.
The violence of the waves was spent.

Pass

To happen; take place
Wanted to know what had passed at the meeting.

Spend

To consume, to use up (time).
My sister usually spends her free time in nightclubs.
We spent the winter in the south of France.

Pass

To be allowed to happen without notice or challenge
Let their rude remarks pass.

Spend

To have an orgasm; to ejaculate sexually.

Pass

Sports & Games To decline one's turn to bid, draw, bet, compete, or play.

Spend

(intransitive) To waste or wear away; to be consumed.
Energy spends in the using of it.

Pass

To decline an offer
When we offered him dessert, he passed.

Spend

To be diffused; to spread.

Pass

To undergo an examination or a trial with favorable results.

Spend

(mining) To break ground; to continue working.

Pass

To serve as a barely acceptable substitute
The spare tire was nearly bald but would pass until we bought a new one.

Spend

Amount of money spent (during a period); expenditure.
I’m sorry, boss, but the advertising spend exceeded the budget again this month.

Pass

To be accepted as a member of a group by denying one's own ancestry or background.

Spend

(in the plural) Expenditures; money or pocket money.

Pass

To be approved or adopted
The motion to adjourn passed.

Spend

Discharged semen.

Pass

To make a decision
To pass upon a legal question.

Spend

Vaginal discharge.

Pass

To convey property to an heir or heirs
To pass according to the terms of the will.

Spend

To weigh or lay out; to dispose of; to part with; as, to spend money for clothing.
Spend thou that in the town.
Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread?

Pass

(Medicine) To be discharged from a bodily part
The patient had a lot of pain when the kidney stone passed.

Spend

To bestow; to employ; - often with on or upon.
I . . . am never loathTo spend my judgment.

Pass

(Sports) To thrust or lunge in fencing.

Spend

To consume; to waste; to squander; to exhaust; as, to spend an estate in gaming or other vices.

Pass

To go by without stopping; proceed beyond or leave behind
The bus passed a gas station.

Spend

To pass, as time; to suffer to pass away; as, to spend a day idly; to spend winter abroad.
We spend our years as a tale that is told.

Pass

To go across; go through
We passed the border into Mexico.

Spend

To exhaust of force or strength; to waste; to wear away; as, the violence of the waves was spent.
Their bodies spent with long labor and thirst.

Pass

To allow to go by or elapse; spend
He passed his winter in Vermont.

Spend

To expend money or any other possession; to consume, use, waste, or part with, anything; as, he who gets easily spends freely.
He spends as a person who knows that he must come to a reckoning.

Pass

To go by without paying attention to; disregard or ignore
If you pass the new photographs in the collection, you'll miss some outstanding ones.

Spend

To waste or wear away; to be consumed; to lose force or strength; to vanish; as, energy spends in the using of it.
The sound spendeth and is dissipated in the open air.

Pass

To fail to pay (a dividend).

Spend

To be diffused; to spread.
The vines that they use for wine are so often cut, that their sap spendeth into the grapes.

Pass

To go beyond; surpass
The inheritance passed my wildest dreams.

Spend

To break ground; to continue working.

Pass

To undergo (a trial or examination) with favorable results
She passed every test.

Spend

Pass (time) in a specific way;
How are you spending your summer vacation?

Pass

To cause or allow to go through a trial, test, or examination successfully
The instructor passed all the candidates.

Spend

Pay out;
Spend money

Pass

To cause to move
We passed our hands over the fabric.

Spend

Spend completely;
I spend my pocket money in two days

Pass

To cause to move into a certain position
Pass a ribbon around a package.

Pass

To cause to move as part of a process
Pass liquid through a filter.

Pass

To cause to go by
The sergeant passed his troops before the grandstand.

Pass

To allow to cross a barrier
The border guard passed the tourists.

Pass

(Baseball) To walk (a batter).

Pass

To maneuver (the bull) by means of a pase in bullfighting.

Pass

To cause to be transferred from one to another; circulate
They passed the news quickly.

Pass

To hand over to someone else
Please pass the bread.

Pass

(Sports) To transfer (a ball, for example) to a teammate, as by throwing.

Pass

To cause to be accepted; circulate fraudulently
Pass counterfeit money.

Pass

(Law) To convey (property) to an heir or heirs
To pass an estate.

Pass

(Medicine) To discharge (a waste product, for example) from a bodily part.

Pass

(Medicine) To introduce (an instrument) into a bodily cavity.

Pass

To approve; adopt
The legislature passed the bill.

Pass

To be sanctioned, ratified, or approved by
The bill passed the House of Representatives.

Pass

To pronounce; utter
Pass judgment.
Pass sentence on an offender.

Pass

The act of passing; passage.

Pass

A way, such as a narrow gap between mountains, that affords passage around, over, or through a barrier.

Pass

A permit, ticket, or authorization to come and go at will.

Pass

A free ticket entitling one to transportation or admission.

Pass

Written leave of absence from military duty.

Pass

A passing grade, especially when graded using a pass-fail grading system.

Pass

A sweep or run, as by an aircraft, over or toward an area or target.

Pass

A single complete cycle of operations, as by a machine or computer program.

Pass

A condition or situation, often critical in nature; a predicament
Contract negotiations that had come to an emotional pass.

Pass

A sexual invitation or overture
Was he making a pass at her?.

Pass

A motion of the hand or the waving of a wand
The magician made a pass over the hat.

Pass

(Sports) A transfer of a ball or puck between teammates.

Pass

(Sports) A lunge or thrust in fencing.

Pass

(Baseball) A base on balls.

Pass

Sports & Games A refusal to bid, draw, bet, compete, or play.

Pass

(Games) A winning throw of the dice in craps.

Pass

A pase in bullfighting.

Pass

To change place.

Pass

(intransitive) To move or be moved from one place to another.
They passed from room to room.

Pass

(transitive) To go past, by, over, or through; to proceed from one side to the other of; to move past.
You will pass a house on your right.

Pass

(ditransitive) To cause to move or go; to send; to transfer from one person, place, or condition to another.
The waiter passed biscuits and cheese.
John passed Suzie a note.
The torch was passed from hand to hand.

Pass

To eliminate (something) from the body by natural processes.
He was passing blood in both his urine and his stool.
The poison had been passed by the time of the autopsy.

Pass

To take a turn with (a line, gasket, etc.), as around a sail in furling, and make secure.

Pass

(sport) To make various kinds of movement.

Pass

(intransitive) To go from one person to another.

Pass

(transitive) To put in circulation; to give currency to.
Pass counterfeit money

Pass

To cause to obtain entrance, admission, or conveyance.
Pass a person into a theater or over a railroad

Pass

To put through a sieve.
When it's finished cooking, you should pass the sauce to get rid of any lumps.

Pass

To change in state or status

Pass

(intransitive) To progress from one state to another; to advance.
He passed from youth into old age.

Pass

(intransitive) To depart, to cease, to come to an end.
At first, she was worried, but that feeling soon passed.

Pass

(intransitive) To die.
His grandmother passed yesterday.

Pass

To achieve a successful outcome from.
He attempted the examination, but did not expect to pass.
Of the Ancient Wonders, only the pyramids have passed the test of time.

Pass

To advance through all the steps or stages necessary to become valid or effective; to obtain the formal sanction of (a legislative body).
Despite the efforts of the opposition, the bill passed.
The bill passed both houses of Congress.
The bill passed the Senate, but did not pass in the House.

Pass

To be conveyed or transferred by will, deed, or other instrument of conveyance.
The estate passes by the third clause in Mr Smith's deed to his son.
When the old king passed away with only a daughter as an heir, the throne passed to a woman for the first time in centuries.

Pass

(transitive) To cause to advance by stages of progress; to carry on with success through an ordeal, examination, or action; specifically, to give legal or official sanction to; to ratify; to enact; to approve as valid and just.
He passed the bill through the committee.

Pass

To make a judgment on or upon a person or case.

Pass

(transitive) To utter; to pronounce; to pledge.

Pass

(intransitive) To change from one state to another (without the implication of progression).

Pass

To move through time.

Pass

To elapse, to be spent.
Their vacation passed pleasantly.

Pass

To spend.
What will we do to pass the time?

Pass

(transitive) To go by without noticing; to omit attention to; to take no note of; to disregard.

Pass

(intransitive) To continue.

Pass

(intransitive) To proceed without hindrance or opposition.
You're late, but I'll let it pass.

Pass

(transitive) To live through; to have experience of; to undergo; to suffer.

Pass

(intransitive) To happen.
It will soon come to pass.

Pass

To be accepted.

Pass

To be tolerated as a substitute for something else, to "do".
It isn't ideal, but it will pass.

Pass

To be accepted by others as a member of a race, sex, or other group to which one does not belong or would not have originally appeared to belong; especially to be considered white although one has black ancestry, or a woman although one was assigned male at birth or vice versa.

Pass

To refrain from doing something.

Pass

(intransitive) To decline something that is offered or available.
He asked me to go to the cinema with him, but I think I'll pass.

Pass

(transitive) To reject; to pass up.

Pass

(intransitive) To decline or not attempt to answer a question.
I haven't any idea of the answer, so I'll have to pass.

Pass

(intransitive) In turn-based games, to decline to play in one's turn.

Pass

In euchre, to decline to make the trump.

Pass

To do or be better.

Pass

To go beyond bounds; to surpass; to be in excess.

Pass

(transitive) To transcend; to surpass; to excel; to exceed.

Pass

To take heed, to have an interest, to care.

Pass

An opening, road, or track, available for passing; especially, one through or over some dangerous or otherwise impracticable barrier such as a mountain range; a passageway; a defile; a ford.
Mountain pass

Pass

A channel connecting a river or body of water to the sea, for example at the mouth (delta) of a river.
The passes of the Mississippi

Pass

A single movement, especially of a hand, at, over, or along anything.

Pass

A single passage of a tool over something, or of something over a tool.

Pass

An attempt.
My first pass at a career of writing proved unsuccessful.

Pass

Success in an examination or similar test.
I gained three passes at A-level, in mathematics, French, and English literature.

Pass

(fencing) A thrust or push; an attempt to stab or strike an adversary.

Pass

(figuratively) A thrust; a sally of wit.

Pass

A sexual advance.
The man kicked his friend out of the house after he made a pass at his wife.

Pass

(sports) The act of moving the ball or puck from one player to another.

Pass

(rail transport) A passing of two trains in the same direction on a single track, when one is put into a siding to let the other overtake it.

Pass

Permission or license to pass, or to go and come.

Pass

A document granting permission to pass or to go and come; a passport; a ticket permitting free transit or admission
A railroad pass; a theater pass; a military pass

Pass

(baseball) An intentional walk.
Smith was given a pass after Jones' double.

Pass

(sports) The act of overtaking; an overtaking manoeuvre.

Pass

The state of things; condition; predicament; impasse.

Pass

(obsolete) Estimation; character.

Pass

(cookery) The area in a restaurant kitchen where the finished dishes are passed from the chefs to the waiting staff.

Pass

An act of declining to play one's turn in a game, often by saying the word "pass".
A pass would have seen her win the game, but instead she gave a wrong answer and lost a point, putting her in second place.

Pass

(computing) A run through a document as part of a translation, compilation or reformatting process.
Most Pascal compilers process source code in a single pass.

Pass

A password (especially one for a restricted-access website).
Anyone want to trade passes?

Pass

To go; to move; to proceed; to be moved or transferred from one point to another; to make a transit; - usually with a following adverb or adverbal phrase defining the kind or manner of motion; as, to pass on, by, out, in, etc.; to pass swiftly, directly, smoothly, etc.; to pass to the rear, under the yoke, over the bridge, across the field, beyond the border, etc.
On high behests his angels to and froPassed frequent.
Sweet sounds rose slowly through their mouths,And from their bodies passed.

Pass

To move or be transferred from one state or condition to another; to change possession, condition, or circumstances; to undergo transition; as, the business has passed into other hands.
Others, dissatisfied with what they have, . . . pass from just to unjust.

Pass

To move beyond the range of the senses or of knowledge; to pass away; hence, to disappear; to vanish; to depart; specifically, to depart from life; to die.
Disturb him not, let him pass paceably.
Beauty is a charm, but soon the charm will pass.
The passing of the sweetest soulThat ever looked with human eyes.

Pass

To move or to come into being or under notice; to come and go in consciousness; hence, to take place; to occur; to happen; to come; to occur progressively or in succession; to be present transitorily.
So death passed upon all men.
Our own consciousness of what passes within our own mind.

Pass

To go by or glide by, as time; to elapse; to be spent; as, their vacation passed pleasantly.
Now the time is far passed.

Pass

To go from one person to another; hence, to be given and taken freely; as, clipped coin will not pass; to obtain general acceptance; to be held or regarded; to circulate; to be current; - followed by for before a word denoting value or estimation.
False eloquence passeth only where true is not understood.
This will not pass for a fault in him.

Pass

To advance through all the steps or stages necessary to validity or effectiveness; to be carried through a body that has power to sanction or reject; to receive legislative sanction; to be enacted; as, the resolution passed; the bill passed both houses of Congress.

Pass

To go through any inspection or test successfully; to be approved or accepted; as, he attempted the examination, but did not expect to pass.

Pass

To be suffered to go on; to be tolerated; hence, to continue; to live along.

Pass

To go unheeded or neglected; to proceed without hindrance or opposition; as, we let this act pass.

Pass

To go beyond bounds; to surpass; to be in excess.

Pass

To take heed; to care.
As for these silken-coated slaves, I pass not.

Pass

To go through the intestines.

Pass

To be conveyed or transferred by will, deed, or other instrument of conveyance; as, an estate passes by a certain clause in a deed.

Pass

To make a lunge or pass; to thrust.

Pass

To decline to play in one's turn; in euchre, to decline to make the trump.
She would not play, yet must not pass.

Pass

To go by, beyond, over, through, or the like; to proceed from one side to the other of; as, to pass a house, a stream, a boundary, etc.
She loved me for the dangers I had passed.

Pass

To go by without noticing; to omit attention to; to take no note of; to disregard.
Please you that I may pass This doing.
I pass their warlike pomp, their proud array.

Pass

To cause to move or go; to send; to transfer from one person, place, or condition to another; to transmit; to deliver; to hand; to make over; as, the waiter passed bisquit and cheese; the torch was passed from hand to hand.
I had only time to pass my eye over the medals.
Waller passed over five thousand horse and foot by Newbridge.

Pass

To transcend; to surpass; to excel; to exceed.
And strive to pass . . . Their native music by her skillful art.
Whose tender powerPasses the strength of storms in their most desolate hour.

Pass

To cause to pass the lips; to utter; to pronounce; hence, to promise; to pledge; as, to pass sentence.
Father, thy word is passed.

Pass

To emit from the bowels; to evacuate.

Pass

To go successfully through, as an examination, trail, test, etc.; to obtain the formal sanction of, as a legislative body; as, he passed his examination; the bill passed the senate.

Pass

To cause to advance by stages of progress; to carry on with success through an ordeal, examination, or action; specifically, to give legal or official sanction to; to ratify; to enact; to approve as valid and just; as, he passed the bill through the committee; the senate passed the law.

Pass

To take a turn with (a line, gasket, etc.), as around a sail in furling, and make secure.

Pass

To make, as a thrust, punto, etc.

Pass

An opening, road, or track, available for passing; especially, one through or over some dangerous or otherwise impracticable barrier; a passageway; a defile; a ford; as, a mountain pass.
"Try not the pass!" the old man said.

Pass

A thrust or push; an attempt to stab or strike an adversary.

Pass

A movement of the hand over or along anything; the manipulation of a mesmerist.

Pass

A single passage of a bar, rail, sheet, etc., between the rolls.

Pass

State of things; condition; predicament.
Have his daughters brought him to this pass.
Matters have been brought to this pass.

Pass

Permission or license to pass, or to go and come; a psssport; a ticket permitting free transit or admission; as, a railroad or theater pass; a military pass.
A ship sailing under the flag and pass of an enemy.

Pass

Fig.: a thrust; a sally of wit.

Pass

Estimation; character.
Common speech gives him a worthy pass.

Pass

A part; a division.

Pass

In football, hockey, and other team sports, a transfer of the ball, puck, etc., to another player of one's own team, usually at some distance. In American football, the pass is through the air by an act of throwing the ball.

Pass

(baseball) an advance to first base by a batter who receives four balls;
He worked the pitcher for a base on balls

Pass

(military) a written leave of absence;
He had a pass for three days

Pass

(American football) a play that involves one player throwing the ball to a teammate;
The coach sent in a passing play on third and long

Pass

The location in a range of mountains of a geological formation that is lower than the surrounding peaks;
We got through the pass before it started to snow

Pass

Any authorization to pass or go somewhere;
The pass to visit had a strict time limit

Pass

A document indicating permission to do something without restrictions;
The media representatives had special passes

Pass

A flight or run by an aircraft over a target;
The plane turned to make a second pass

Pass

A bad or difficult situation or state of affairs

Pass

A difficult juncture;
A pretty pass
Matters came to a head yesterday

Pass

One complete cycle of operations (as by a computer);
It was not possible to complete the computation in a single pass

Pass

You advance to the next round in a tournament without playing an opponent;
He had a bye in the first round

Pass

A permit to enter or leave a military installation;
He had to show his pass in order to get out

Pass

A complementary (free) ticket;
The start got passes for his family

Pass

A usually brief attempt;
He took a crack at it
I gave it a whirl

Pass

(sports) the act of throwing the ball to another member of your team;
The pass was fumbled

Pass

Success in satisfying a test or requirement;
His future depended on his passing that test
He got a pass in introductory chemistry

Pass

Go across or through;
We passed the point where the police car had parked
A terrible thought went through his mind

Pass

Pass by;
A black limousine passed by when she looked out the window
He passed his professor in the hall
One line of soldiers surpassed the other

Pass

Make laws, bills, etc. or bring into effect by legislation;
They passed the amendment
We cannot legislate how people's spend their free time

Pass

Pass by;
Three years elapsed

Pass

Place into the hands or custody of;
Hand me the spoon, please
Turn the files over to me, please
He turned over the prisoner to his lawyers

Pass

Stretch out over a distance, space, time, or scope; run or extend between two points or beyond a certain point;
Service runs all the way to Cranbury
His knowledge doesn't go very far
My memory extends back to my fourth year of life
The facts extend beyond a consideration of her personal assets

Pass

Travel past;
The sports car passed all the trucks

Pass

Come to pass;
What is happening?
The meeting took place off without an incidence
Nothing occurred that seemed important

Pass

Go unchallenged; be approved;
The bill cleared the House

Pass

Pass (time) in a specific way;
How are you spending your summer vacation?

Pass

Guide or pass over something;
He ran his eyes over her body
She ran her fingers along the carved figurine
He drew her hair through his fingers

Pass

Transmit information ;
Please communicate this message to all employees

Pass

Disappear gradually;
The pain eventually passed off

Pass

Go successfully through a test or a selection process;
She passed the new Jersey Bar Exam and can practice law now

Pass

Go beyond;
She exceeded our expectations
She topped her performance of last year

Pass

Accept or judge as acceptable;
The teacher passed the student although he was weak

Pass

Allow to go without comment or censure;
The insult passed as if unnoticed

Pass

Transfer to another; of rights or property;
Our house passed under his official control

Pass

Pass into a specified state or condition;
He sank into Nirvana

Pass

Be identified, regarded, accepted, or mistaken for someone or something else; as by denying one's own ancestry or background;
He could pass as his twin brother
She passed as a White woman even though her grandfather was Black

Pass

Throw (a ball) to another player;
Smith passed

Pass

Be inherited by;
The estate fell to my sister
The land returned to the family
The estate devolved to an heir that everybody had assumed to be dead

Pass

Cause to pass;
She passed around the plates

Pass

Grant authorization or clearance for;
Clear the manuscript for publication
The rock star never authorized this slanderous biography

Pass

Pass from physical life and lose all all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life;
She died from cancer
They children perished in the fire
The patient went peacefully

Pass

Eliminate from the body;
Pass a kidney stone

Pass

Of advancing the ball by throwing it;
A team with a good passing attack
A pass play

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