make a pass

English

Verb

make a pass (third-person singular simple present makes a pass, present participle making a pass, simple past and past participle made a pass) [with at]

1. To unambiguously indicate interest in sexual activity to someone the speaker has not previously been sexually involved with.

   He clumsily made a pass at the prom queen, and she responded with a scowl.

   • 1926, Dorothy Parker, “News Item”, in Enough Rope, page 85:

     Men seldom make passes / At girls who wear glasses.

   • 1985, Joel Schumacher, Carl Kurlander, St. Elmo's Fire (motion picture), spoken by Julianna "Jules" Van Patten (Demi Moore):

     You know, all those nights we stayed up talking…How come you never made a pass at me?

Usage notes

The term is most frequently used for unwanted sexual advances.

Translations

to unambiguously indicate interest in sexual activity to someone the speaker has not previously been sexually involved with

• Hungarian: kikezd (hu)
• Spanish: insinuarse (es)

See also

• flirt
• hit on
• proposition

• make the passes