en passant

[ ahn pa-sahnt; French ahn pah-sahn ]

adverb

1. (italics) French. in passing; by the way.
2. Chess. (used when a pawn that has moved two squares is captured by an opponent's pawn commanding the square that was passed.)

en passant

/ ɒn pæˈsɑːnt; ɑ̃ pasɑ̃ /

adverb

1. in passing: in chess, said of capturing a pawn that has made an initial move of two squares to its fourth rank, bypassing the square where an enemy pawn on its own fifth rank could capture it. The capture is made as if the captured pawn had moved one square instead of two

Word History and Origins

Origin of en passant¹

First recorded in 1655–65

Word History and Origins

Origin of en passant¹

C17: from French

Example Sentences

“You don’t need to know anything about Aristophanes and ancient Greece to engage in the festival. You can, en passant, find out about these things.”

From New York Times

While he said that a deal was possible by the end of the week, German EU Commissioner Guenter Oettinger cautioned that “Greece’s challenges are too big to be solved ‘en passant.’”

From Washington Times

"Greece's challenges are too big to be solved 'en passant'," he said.

From Reuters

She mentioned, en passant, the need to end “unproductive discussions” in “ideological bunkers.”

From Newsweek

Their attempt to capture a pawn “en passant” failed.

From Washington Post