Passer, vi : to pass by, to drop by, to stop by, to spend time; to take an exam (NOT to pass an exam).
Se passer, v pron : to happen, to occur.
Se passer de, v pron + prép : to do without, to go without.

The French word « passer » looks almost the same as the English word “pass.”

Be careful with this one.
The French verb « passer » has so many different uses that it can be very confusing to choose the right form for what you are trying to say.

The most common meaning of “pass” in English is “to go past” (same as French), “to stop by (same in French), and “to succeed on a test” (NOT the same in French).

In French, it depends if « passer » is used alone, or if it is used in a pronominal form.
If used alone, it is most similar to the English usage, meaning “to pass by”… but it never ever means to “pass an exam.”
If used in the basic pronominal form, « se passer », it means “to happen” or “to occur.”
If the preposition « de » is added to the basic pronominal form, « se passer de », it means “to do without or “to go without.”

It’s complicated.

Après le travail, je vais passer par le marché.
After work, I’m going to stop by the market.

Je vais passer mes vacances chez mon frère.
I’m going to spend my vacation at my brother’s place.

Hier j’ai passé mon examen français. Aujourd’hui j’ai entendu que je l’ai réussi !
Yesterday I took my French exam. Today I heard that I passed!

Qu’est-ce qui se passe ?
What is happening?

Si je le devais, je pourrais très bien me passer de chocolat. (Pas vraiment !)
If I had to, I could go without chocolate. (Not really!)