passing down

Verb

pass down (third-person singular simple present passes down, present participle passing down, simple past and past participle passed down)

1. (transitive) To hand over, pass through or transfer to a lower level, next generation, etc.
   • In poor families, solid clothes are passed down from elder children to kid siblings, who must wear them out or if they outgrow them pass them down to still younger relatives.
2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see pass, down.