Word.ws English Dictionary

going once, going twice

going once, going twice phrase: said before closing the bidding for a particular item in an auction, giving other bidders a final opportunity to bid for it.

Phrase

going once, going twice

  1. Said before closing the bidding for a particular item in an auction, giving other bidders a final opportunity to bid for it.
    1. By extension, indicating that the speaker will take some action if there is no immediate objection.
      • Now I'm asking you once again, where's my money? Going once, going twice!” “Wait a minute, Carlos...”1977, Lynn Pearson, Out of Work, page 330
      • Picked up the last slice of pizza and asked, “Anybody want it? Going once, going twice, the last call for the last slice of pizza!”2021, Gary T. Brideau, The Long Way Home, page 111

Origin of going once, going twice

Ellipsis of going once, going twice, sold.

Questions about going once, going twice

What does going once, going twice mean?
Going once, going twice means said before closing the bidding for a particular item in an auction, giving other bidders a final opportunity to bid for it.
What part of speech is going once, going twice?
Going once, going twice is a phrase.

Words near going once, going twice in the dictionary

  1. going on strike
  2. going on the account
  3. going on the mitch
  4. going on the scout
  5. going on vacation
  6. going once, going twice
  7. going once, going twice, sold
  8. going one better
  9. going one's own way
  10. going one's ways
  11. going or blowing

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: going once, going twice (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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