Passaunt

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. An archaic term describing something that surpasses others in quality, worth, or degree of excellence
2. Old-fashioned word meaning outstanding, exceptional, or going beyond what is ordinary in merit
3. Used in older English to mean superior, excelling, or remarkably fine in some respect

Etymology: In Middle English, "passaunt" was a spelling of the Old French "passant," the present participle of "passer," "to pass," so it originally meant "passing by" or "going past." From that sense it came to mean "surpassing" or "excellent," something that goes beyond others of its kind. That is likely the sense in which Middle English writers used it, though the exact dates and frequency of these uses are uncertain. The same participle survives in heraldry, where "passant" describes an animal shown walking across the shield, usually with one forepaw raised. That heraldic use is a separate, later technical application of the same French word rather than a development of the "excellent" sense.