Pasar a + infinitive.. what is the meaning of that?

Question

When you put

pasar a + infinitive what does it mean?

pasar a verme

pasar a comer

pasar a comprar

Is this a common use in speech? thanks

Something like "stop by to get the paper" (to buy milk, to withdraw some momey, etc). - bassagui, Apr 9, 2011

ooopssss...MONEY... not momey - bassagui, Apr 9, 2011

Nice question dewclaw :) - GuitarWarrior, Apr 9, 2011

Answer 1

It could be a few things. If you take "pasar(se)" literally, then "Pásate a verme" would be something like "Come to see me". It is also used quite often as a periphrasis, like in English "I am going to think", where you are not really "going" anywhere in the strict sense of the term. When you analyse it this way, you are not really "pasando" (i.e. going to visit or to pick up someone) either in a literal sense, but metaphorically you are going from one state onto another, and the infinitive indicates what the new state or action is going to be. That's why "pasar a ser" can be translated as "to become", because you are going from being something to being something different. Sentences like "pasaron a discutir el problema" would mean that they went from doing whatever they were doing to discussing the problem. "Pasar" here signals this transition.

Think of a comic, where you pass (=pasar) the page, and things are different afterwards.

I'm unfamiliar with this structure. Thanks lazarus, I guess we learn something new everyday! - GuitarWarrior, Apr 9, 2011

infinitivo que significa .. i no sé cuál es el significado exacto - allancordova, Apr 15, 2012