pass-fail

[ pas-feyl, pahs- ]

/ ˈpæsˈfeɪl, ˈpɑs- /

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noun Education.

a system of grading in some educational institutions in which a student simply passes or fails instead of receiving a letter or numerical grade.

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON "WAS" VS. "WERE"!

Were you ready for a quiz on this topic? Well, here it is! See how well you can differentiate between the uses of "was" vs. "were" in this quiz.

Question 1 of 7

“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

Origin of pass-fail

First recorded in 1955–60

The Big Five banks dubbed too big to fail, are 35 percent bigger than they were when the meltdown was triggered.
Sen. Warren’s Main Street Crusade to Pressure Clinton|Eleanor Clift|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
San Francisco was the first city to pass one in 2006; since then, 14 other cities and three states have followed suit.
Christie Blames Parents for Bad Economy|Monica Potts|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Congress is attempting to pass the buck on federal funding for education.
The ‘No Child’ Rewrite Threatens Your Kids’ Future|Jonah Edelman|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“They just walk around, they ride in their patrol cars, and they just pass by,” he said.
Ground Zero of the NYPD Slowdown|Batya Ungar-Sargon|January 1, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Typically, aircraft will work in pairs where the flight lead will make an initial pass to mark a target with rockets.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019|Dave Majumdar|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Let the thought of self pass in, and the beauty of great action is gone, like the bloom from a soiled flower.
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou
The riches of the unjust shall be dried up like a river, and shall pass away with a noise like a great thunder in rain.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
But men, through neglecting the rules of health, pass quickly to old age, and die before reaching that term.
The Mediaeval Mind (Volume II of II)|Henry Osborn Taylor
Madame and myself had just been regretting that we should have to pass the evening in this miserable hole of a town.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 60, No. 372, October 1846|Various
He shall pass into strange countries: for he shall try good and evil among men.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various