The past; bygone times or events that have already occurred.
過去の失敗から学ぶことは大切だ。
It's important to learn from past failures.
彼らは過去の栄光を語り合った。
They talked about their past glories.
過去の出来事は消せないが、未来は変えられる。
Past events cannot be erased, but the future can be changed.
One's past in the sense of private or embarrassing experiences one would prefer remained secret.
彼は過去を隠していたが、やがてそれが明らかになった。
He had hidden his past, but eventually it came to light.
過去を清算して新しい生活を始めたいと言った。
He said he wanted to settle his past and start a new life.
The grammatical past tense (preterite), indicating actions or states that occurred previously.
日本語では動詞の過去形に「た」を付ける（食べた、行った）。
In Japanese, the past tense of verbs is formed by attaching 'ta' (e.g., tabeta, itta).
文法のテストでは過去と現在の使い分けが問われる。
The grammar test asks you to distinguish between past and present usage.
In Buddhism, a previous life (one's former incarnation).
仏教では、過去の行いが今の人生に影響すると考えられることがある。
In Buddhism, it is sometimes believed that actions in past lives affect one's current life.