Word.ws English Dictionary

passim

Syllables: pas·simUK/ˈpæ.sɪm/

passim adverb: used in citations to indicate that something, as a word, phrase, or idea, is to be found at many places throughout the work cited; here and there, throughout.

Adverb

passim (not comparable)

  1. Used in citations to indicate that something, as a word, phrase, or idea, is to be found at many places throughout the work cited; here and there, throughout.
    • The sceptics assert [Sext. Emp. adversus Math. lib. viii.], though absurdly, that the origin of all religious worship was derived from the utility of inanimate objects, as the sun and moon, to the support and well-being of mankind. This is also the common reason assigned by historians, for the...1751, David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals
    • See also Hearings on H.R.8825 before the House Committee on the Merchant Marine and Fisheries, 70th Cong., 1st Sess., passim (1928).1978, Supreme Court of the United States, F.C.C. v. Pacifica Foundation

Adjective

passim (not comparable)

  1. (rare) That occurs at various places throughout a text.
    • In these passim allusions one often ‘nods’.1895, J. Marshall, Westminster Gazette, 4, September 2/3

Origin of passim

Unadapted borrowing from Latin passim (“everywhere, here and there”).

Questions about passim

What does passim mean?
Passim means used in citations to indicate that something, as a word, phrase, or idea, is to be found at many places throughout the work cited; here and there, throughout.
What part of speech is passim?
Passim can be an adverb or an adjective.
How do you pronounce passim?
Passim is pronounced /ˈpæ.sɪm/ (UK).

Words near passim in the dictionary

  1. passifloraceous
  2. passifloras
  3. passiflorine
  4. passify
  5. passifying
  6. passim
  7. passimeter
  8. passimeters
  9. passing
  10. passing a good time
  11. passing a sponge over the slate

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: passim (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-passim.ogg.

Cite this entry: “passim.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/passim. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.