过去 meaning in English
(in the) past; former; previous; to go over; to pass by
Meaning of 过去
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- (in the) past; former; previous
- to go over; to pass by
- (verb suffix)
How to use 过去
As a noun, 过去 (guòqù) means the past, as in 过去的事 (things from the past). As a verb it means to go over or pass by, often toward a place away from the speaker. Example: 我过去看看。(Wǒ guòqù kànkan.) I'll go over and take a look.
过 (guò) means to pass or cross, and 去 (qù) means to go away. Something that has passed and gone away is the past, or it is you going over to somewhere else.
Common mistake: Learners mix up 过去 and 过来 (guòlái). 过去 means moving away from the speaker, while 过来 means moving toward the speaker, so say 你过来 (come here), not 你过去, when calling someone over.
过去 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
过 guò · to cross · 6 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
去 qù · to go · 5 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
Related words
Words that share a character with 过去.
| 出去 | chūqù | to go out |
| 回去 | huíqù | to return; to go back |
| 进去 | jìnqù | to go in |
| 去年 | qùnián | last year |
| 不过 | bùguò | only; merely |
| 过来 | guòlái | to come over; to manage |
| 通过 | tōngguò | to pass through; to get through; to adopt (a resolution); to pass (legislation) |
| 经过 | jīngguò | to pass; to go through |
| 超过 | chāoguò | to surpass; to exceed |
| 难过 | nánguò | to feel sad; to feel unwell |
| 见过 | jiànguo | |
| 走过 | zǒuguò | to walk past; to pass by |
Questions about 过去
What does 过去 mean?
过去 (guòqù) means "(in the) past; former; previous; to go over; to pass by" and is used as a verb and noun.
How do you write 过去?
过去 is made of 2 characters: 过 (6 strokes), 去 (5 strokes). That is 11 strokes in total.
Is 过去 an HSK word?
Yes. 过去 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 过去 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 过去 is written 過去.
Why is 过去 sometimes pronounced guòqu with a neutral tone?
When 过去 follows another verb as a direction suffix, 去 often loses its tone, as in 走过去 (zǒu guoqu, walk over). When it means the past, it keeps the full tone: guòqù.
What is the difference between 过去 and 以前 (yǐqián)?
Both can mean before or in the past. 以前 can follow a time or event, like 三点以前 (before three o'clock), but 过去 cannot be used that way. 过去 is also more common when talking about the past as a whole period.