Definition of 'once'
4. adverb [ADVERB with verb, ADV with be]
If something was once true, it was true at some time in the past, but is no longer true.
7.
See all at once
8.
See at once
9.
10.
See for once
11.
See once again
12.
See once and for all
13.
See once in a while
14.
See once or twice
15.
See once upon a time
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
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Word Frequency
once in British English
adverb
5.
multiplied by one
6. See once and away
7. See once and for all
8. See once in a while
9. See once or twice
10. See once upon a time
conjunction
noun
12.
one occasion or case
you may do it, this once
13. See all at once
14. See at once
15. See for once
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin
C12 ones, ānes, adverbial genitive of on, ān oneWord Frequency
once in American English
adverb
1.
one time; one time only
to eat once a day
2.
at any time; at all; ever
she'll succeed if once given a chance
3.
at some time in the past; formerly
a once famous man
conjunction
5.
as soon as; if ever; whenever
once he has made his point, he will be quiet
adjective
6.
former; quondam
noun
7.
one time
go this once
Idioms:
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word Frequency
once in American English
(wʌns)
adverb
1.
at one time in the past; formerly
I was a farmer once
a once powerful nation
4.
by a single step, degree, or grade
a cousin once removed
5. See once and again
6. See once and for all
7. See once in a while
8. See once or twice
9. See once upon a time
adjective
10.
former; having at one time been
the once and future king
conjunction
11.
if or when at any time; if ever
12.
whenever; as soon as
Once you're finished, you can leave
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Word origin
[bef. 1150; ME ones, OE ānes, orig. gen. of ān one; r. ME enes, OE ǣnes once, equiv. to ǣne once (orig. instrumental of ān) + -es adv. suffix; see -s1]Examples of 'once' in a sentence
once
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In other languages
once
British English: once
/wʌns/ ADVERB
If something happens once, it happens one time only.
I met her once, at a party.
- American English: once /ˈwʌns/
- Arabic: مَرَةٌ
- Brazilian Portuguese: uma vez
- Chinese: 一次
- Croatian: jednom
- Czech: jednou
- Danish: en gang
- Dutch: eens
- European Spanish: una vez
- Finnish: kerran
- French: une fois
- German: einmal
- Greek: άπαξ
- Italian: una volta
- Japanese: 一度
- Korean: 한 번
- Norwegian: en gang
- Polish: raz
- European Portuguese: uma vez
- Romanian: o dată
- Russian: однократно
- Latin American Spanish: una vez
- Swedish: en gång
- Thai: ครั้งหนึ่ง
- Turkish: bir seferinde
- Ukrainian: один раз
- Vietnamese: một lần
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once
Source
Definition of once from the Collins English Dictionary
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