once

Etymology

From Middle English ones, from Old English ānes, a remodelling (after ān (“one”)) of ǣnes, itself an extension of ǣne (“once”) with the genitival suffix -es. Compare Old Saxon ēnes (“once”), Old High German eines, einēst (“once”), modern German einst (“once”). More at one (including regarding the development of the pronunciation) and -s.

adv

1. (frequency) One and only one time.
   I have only once eaten pizza.
2. (temporal location) Formerly; during some period in the past.
   He was once the most handsome man around.
   I once had a bicycle just like that one.
   Wang notes that flowers have rooted and grow in the area once covered with ice. File:Wang notes that flowers have rooted and grow in the area once covered with ice.ogg
   The hovel stood in the centre of what had once been a vegetable garden, but was now a patch of rank weeds. Surrounding this, almost like a zareba, was an irregular ring of gorse and brambles, an unclaimed vestige of the original common. 1944, Miles Burton, chapter 5, in The Three Corpse Trick
   Now we are liberal with our innermost secrets, spraying them into the public ether with a generosity our forebears could not have imagined. Where we once sent love letters in a sealed envelope, or stuck photographs of our children in a family album, now such private material is despatched to servers and clouds operated by people we don't know and will never meet. 2013-06-14, Jonathan Freedland, “Obama's once hip brand is now tainted”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 1, page 18
3. (chiefly obsolete) At any time; ever.
   If the facts once became known, we'd be in trouble.
4. (obsolete) One day, someday.
5. (mathematics) Multiplied by one: indicating that a number is multiplied by one.
   Once three is three.

conj

1. As soon as; when; after.
   We'll get a move on once we find the damn car keys!
   Once you have obtained the elven bow, return to the troll bridge and trade it for the sleeping potion.
   Once he is married, he will be able to claim the inheritance.
   Not only were Jupp Heynckes' team pacey in attack but they were relentless in their pursuit of the ball once they had lost it, and as the game wore on they merely increased their dominance as City wilted in the Allianz Arena. September 27, 2011, Alistair Magowan, “Bayern Munich 2 - 0 Man City”, in BBC Sport
   In his submission to the UN, [Christof] Heyns points to the experience of drones. Unmanned aerial vehicles were intended initially only for surveillance, and their use for offensive purposes was prohibited, yet once strategists realised their perceived advantages as a means of carrying out targeted killings, all objections were swept out of the way. 2013-06-07, Ed Pilkington, “‘Killer robots’ should be banned in advance, UN told”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 26, page 6

noun

1. Obsolete form of ounce.