Today’s word is a pretty ‘big’ word with a truckload of meanings: pasar. Because it’s too much to discuss in one go, I’ll cover one general meaning now and some of the other meanings later on. To sum it up, the word pasar can be translated to ‘to come’, ‘go past’, ‘to cross’, ‘to pass’, ‘to happen’ or ‘to spend [time]‘, in English, according to the Pocket Oxford Spanish Dictionary
Especially in Spain, the word pasar is used as a semi-slang word to describe what happened or as an alternative to ¿qué tal? or ¿cómo estás? For example, you can ask ¿qué pasa? to ask what’s happening or to ask how someone is, in which case it’s a colloquial expression. It’s used by people of all ages as doesn’t have a negative meaning that I’m aware of.
Sentences
Lo que pasa es que…
The thing/the problem is …
Siempre pasa lo mismo.
It’s always the same.
¿Qué pasa?
What’s the matter?/what’s up? (colloquial)
¿Qué te pasa?
What’s the matter with you?
Eso le pasa a cualquiera.
That can happen to anybody.
No le pasó nada.
Nothing happened to him.
*Sentences taken from “Pocket Oxford Spanish Dictionary”.
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{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
In Spain also, the verb “pasar” can be used by young people to say they don´t care or they don´t want something. For example:
- “Paso de ti”: I don´t care about you.
- “Paso de ir”: I´m not going.
This meaning is only used in Spain, and only for the last decades.
Alan’s last blog post..Diario del internauta neófito: 6. El Blog
Interesting. I did hear “No me pasa nada” quite some times.
You can also simply say “paso”, when you’re offered an item for sale or a service let’s say… in a shopping mall. That “paso” would be somewhat vulgar but it would mean “I’m not interested at all”. I don’t recommend saying it though, it reflects a bad behaviour. Kids and teens usually say it though.
“quieres jugar al futbol?” “paso, gracias” (no, thanks!)
In Spain, a “Paso”, is also a kind of what you would call a “parade float”, usually from Semana Santa Processions, in the whole width of Spain. A Paso is taken on parade down the streets over volunteers’ shoulders. On top of it you might have Virgin Mary, Jesus Christ or some other religious “images”.
You also have the “Paso de Peatones” (also called “Paso de Cebra”) which would be a Pedestrian Walk, used for correctly crossing the street (I don’t know what the word in English is but it resembles a Zebra pattern)
@Misha: The word in English is “crosswalk.”
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ahhh, the word had just vanished from my memory! thanks Peter!!!
Ramses: The expression “no me pasa nada” is unrelated to the meaning explained by the first poster and would translate as “nothing’s wrong with me” or “I’m fine”, usually as the answer to “¿Qué te pasa?”. Depending on the tone it may mean lots of things, as in any language. Especially when said by your SO it may be a hint that she’s crossed with you but won’t tell you why (yet).
Hey, those aren’t my sentences eh
. And as yyou may have noticed, I *love* colloquial expressions, which can have loads of meanings.
Otra manera de utilizar “pasar” similar a la que dice misha podría ser:
“¿Le has preguntado a Javi si quiere venir a esquiar?”
“Si, se lo he preguntado y dice que pasa”, como diciendo “not interested”
Bye ^^
@Misha: In the UK we call it a “zebra crossing”
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