{"id":2794,"date":"2016-03-09T19:44:16","date_gmt":"2016-03-09T14:14:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/?p=2794"},"modified":"2023-08-01T07:23:51","modified_gmt":"2023-08-01T01:53:51","slug":"past-year-vs-last-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/past-year-vs-last-year\/","title":{"rendered":"Past Year vs Last Year vs Passed Year: Which One is Correct?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>While talking about past events, many people can be found confused between past and last. Contrary to what many believe, past and last cannot be used interchangeably. They are used to describe different conditions of an event with regard to a particular period or phase of time.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s take a look at the following examples.<\/p>\n<div class=\"content-box-yellow\">\n<ul>\n<li>I\u2019ve been waiting for you for the last two hours. (<strong><em>incorrect<\/em><\/strong>)<\/li>\n<li>I\u2019ve been waiting for you for the past two hours. (<strong><em>correct<\/em><\/strong>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>But look at the following examples.<\/p>\n<div class=\"content-box-yellow\">\n<ul>\n<li>Although he started off really slow, he managed to catch up with the goal in the last three sessions. (<strong><em>not past three sessions<\/em><\/strong>)<\/li>\n<li>Although he bowled quite badly at the beginning of the innings, he managed to pick up five wickets in the last two overs. (<strong><em>not past two overs<\/em><\/strong>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>The Explanation<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Last<\/strong>: We use last when we want to talk about a period of time which is the final phase of a certain activity or event.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Past<\/strong>: We use past when we want to talk about a period of time that has just gone by recently.<\/p>\n<p>So, if you\u2019re talking about waiting for someone (as shown in the examples above), it\u2019s correct to use the <strong>past two hours<\/strong> since you mean the period (two hours) that has just gone by.<\/p>\n<p>You cannot use the <strong>last two hours<\/strong> since it\u2019s not a phase of any event. In fact, the only event here is <strong>waiting for two hours<\/strong>. In other words, those <strong>two hours<\/strong> are the period of time which has just gone by <em>waiting for your friend<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Some more examples\u2026<br \/>\nIn his <u>last three years<\/u>, he wrote two biographies. (<em>described to talk about a person who has passed<\/em>)<\/p>\n<h2>Last Year vs Past Year<\/h2>\n<p>Last year means the last calendar year, for example, 2015 (if you\u2019re in 2016).<\/p>\n<p>Past year means the 365 days preceding today. For example, if it was 14<sup>th<\/sup> Feb, 2016 today, then <strong>the past year<\/strong> would mean the time between 15<sup>th<\/sup> Feb, 2015 and 14<sup>th<\/sup> Feb, 2016.<\/p>\n<p><strong>For example:<\/strong><br \/>\nHe completed his MBA last year (<em>for example 2015<\/em>) but he\u2019s been looking for a job for the past year. (<em>for example<\/em>, from 4<sup>th<\/sup> of July, 2015 until 3<sup>rd<\/sup> of July, 2016)<\/p>\n<h2>This Passed Year vs This Past Year<\/h2>\n<p>One of the most incorrectly used phrases in English is \u201cthis passed year\u201d. Many users who commit this error believe \u201cpassed\u201d has the same meaning as \u201cpast\u201d, but that\u2019s incorrect.<\/p>\n<p>Here are some examples of incorrect usage:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You\u2019re passed your bedtime. (<strong><em>incorrect<\/em><\/strong>)<\/li>\n<li>You\u2019re past your bedtime. (<em><strong>correct<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>The popular actor past away. (<em><strong>incorrect<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>The popular actor passed away. (<em><strong>correct<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>He bought these shoes this passed weekend. (<em><strong>incorrect<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>I bought these shoes this past weekend. (<em><strong>correct<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>He walked passed the danger line. (<em><strong>incorrect<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>He walked past the danger line. (<em><strong>correct<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>The Uber drove passed its destination. (<em><strong>incorrect<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>The Uber drove past its destination. (<em><strong>correct<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>Sam got passed the finish line in record time. (<em><strong>incorrect<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>Sam got past the finish line in record time. (<em><strong>correct<\/strong><\/em>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Explanation<\/h3>\n<p>As you can see \u201cPassed\u201d and \u201cPast\u201d both share the same sound and this is probably why \u201cpassed\u201d is often incorrectly used.<\/p>\n<p>Grammatically speaking, \u2018pass\u2019 is a verb that has a range of meanings depending on the context. Let\u2019s take a look at a few examples below:<\/p>\n<div class=\"content-box-yellow\">\n<ul>\n<li>Sandra passed the exam with distinction. (<em>succeed in a test, past tense<\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>I\u2019ve passed your notes to your friend. (<em>hand over, present perfect<\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>My boss passed by me without giving me a glance. (<em>go past something<\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>Sometimes I feel life is passing me by. (<em>leave someone behind<\/em>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>As you can see in the third example mentioned above, \u2018passed\u2019 often can mean to \u201cmove past\u201d and indicates the motion of a person or an object.<\/p>\n<p>Similarly, the word \u201cpast\u201d has a wide range of meanings including \u2018time before the present.<\/p>\n<p><strong>For example:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"content-box-yellow\">\n<ul>\n<li>She has achieved a lot in the past two years. (<em>adjective<\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>There\u2019s no point in looking at your past. (<em>noun<\/em>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>However, \u2018past\u2019 can also be used as an adverb or a preposition as well.<\/p>\n<p><strong>For example:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"content-box-yellow\">\n<ul>\n<li>He ran past. (<em>beyond, adverb<\/em>)<\/li>\n<li>Mike walked past the door. (<em>beyond, preposition<\/em>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>This is exactly where many get confused and end up saying \u201cpassed\u201d when they actually mean \u201cpast\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>It can be confusing for many since, in some cases, both variations are possible.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Look at the following examples:<\/strong><br \/>\nYou have passed the bedtime = You are past the bedtime.<br \/>\nHowever, in natural speech or writing, it sounds awkward to say, \u201cyou have passed the bedtime\u201d.<\/p>\n<h2>What did we learn?<\/h2>\n<p>Whenever you\u2019re confused about whether \u201che walked past or passed the door\u201d, remember \u201cwalk past\u201d as a phrasal verb.<\/p>\n<p>Similarly, don\u2019t say \u201cthis passed weekend\u201d when you mean to say \u201cthis past weekend\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Confused about whether she will \u201cget past or passed the finish line\u201d? Apply the same logic as advised in the first example.<\/p>\n<p>I hope this post clarifies your doubts. If you find this post useful, share it with your friends.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><b>Common Grammar Errors in English<\/b>: Contrary to what many believe, past and last cannot be used interchangeably. They are used to describe different conditions of an event with regards to a particular period or phase of time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"viral-post","_genesis_custom_post_class":"viral-post","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Past Year vs Last Year vs Passed Year: Which One is Correct?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"passed or past year? walked past or passed? passed or past away? drove past or passed? get past or passed? get past or passed? learn to use them correctly.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/past-year-vs-last-year\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Past Year vs Last Year vs Passed Year: Which One is Correct?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Contrary to what many believe, past and last cannot be used interchangeably. 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