What is En Passant?

En passant (French: "in passing" ) is a special pawn capture. When a pawn advances two squares from its starting position and lands beside an opponent's pawn, the opponent may capture it as if it had advanced only one square. The capturing pawn moves diagonally to the square the opposing pawn passed through. En passant must be exercised immediately on the next move or the right is lost. It is the only capture in chess where the capturing piece does not occupy the captured piece's square.