From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpass for somebody/something phrasal verbSAMEif something passes for another thing, it is so similar to that thing that people think that is what it is With my hair cut short, I could have passed for a boy. → pass→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
pass for • For the fourth time in five games, the 49ers failed to pass for 200 yards.• He completed 28 of 49 passes for 239 yards and a touchdown against Dallas' relentless pass rush.• He caught just three passes for 25 yards and seemed to be used as a decoy most of the game.• Peter Edwards looks at the blank space that now passes for a promotions policy.• They're not offering a degree in stage management or a pass for being a good actor or actress.• She learnt a look and a posture and a set of adjectives which passed for being hip in the Village.• Many had come, probably especially since the Persian conquest of Ionia, and had passed for citizens under the tyrants.• The hour had long since passed for his call to Virginia Stillman, and he debated whether to go through with it. 