Elapses

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Refers to the passage of time as it moves forward continuously
2. Describes the progression of moments from one point to another
3. Indicates the ongoing movement of time as intervals occur

Etymology: "Elapses" is the third-person singular form of "elapse," which comes from Latin through French. The Latin verb "elabi" meant "to slip away" or "to glide out," built from "ex," "out," and "labi," "to slide or slip." That sense of slipping quietly out of sight is the same idea behind the English word, which describes time gliding past without anyone quite noticing. The English verb was borrowed via Middle French "elapser," which took the past participle stem "elapsus" from Latin. Because "elapse" is a verb form that English took over in its finished shape, its history lies in that Latin-to-French-to-English path rather than in any native English root.

Synonyms: passes, transpires, goes by

Antonyms: stops, pauses, halts