Word.ws English Dictionary

one

UK/wʌn/

More pronunciations (1)Fewer pronunciations

Australia/wɐn/

one numeral: the number represented by the Arabic numeral 1; the numerical value equal to that cardinal number. Also the deliberate misspelling of !.

Numeral

one

  1. The number represented by the Arabic numeral 1; the numerical value equal to that cardinal number.
    • In some religions, there is more than one god.
    • In many cultures, a baby turns one year old a year after its birth.
  2. The first positive number in the set of natural numbers.
  3. The cardinality of the smallest nonempty set.
  4. The ordinality of an element which has no predecessor, usually called first or number one.

Pronoun (1)

one (reflexive oneself, possessive adjective one's, plural ones)

  1. (impersonal, indefinite, pronoun) One thing (among a group of others); one member of a group.
    • Any one of the boys.
    • Every one of the bank’s employees.
  2. (impersonal, pronoun, sometimes) The first mentioned of two things or people, as opposed to the other.
    • She offered him an apple and an orange; he took (the) one and left the other.
    • I am one of the few women who've climbed Everest.
  3. (indefinite, personal, pronoun) Any person (applying to people in general).
    • One’s guilt may trouble one, but it is best not to let oneself be troubled by things which cannot be changed. One shouldn’t be too quick to judge.
    • My neighbor talks to one like a teacher.
    Synonyms:
    generic you
  4. (pronoun) Any person, entity or thing.
    • "driver", noun: one who drives.

Noun (1)

one (plural ones)

  1. The digit or figure 1.
    • This effectively allows switching on and off of the flow of current, so it is either conducting or not conducting, creating the binary system of zeroes and ones used in digital computers.2024 January 4, Matthew Sparkes, “First working graphene semiconductor could lead to faster computers”, in New Scientist, archived from the original on 23 Feb 2024, retrieved 18 Jan 2024
  2. (US, by ellipsis) A one-dollar bill.
    • I need some ones to make change.
    Synonyms:
    single
  3. (by ellipsis) One o'clock, either a.m. or p.m.
    • It was already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle was nearly burnt out, when, by the glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive motion agitated its limbs.1816 June – 1817 April/May (date written), [Mary Shelley], chapter 5, in Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. […], volume I, London: […] [Macdonald and Son] for Lackington, Hughes, Harding...
    • The ophthalmic surgeon attends Tuesdays and Saturdays, at half-past one.1853 September 17, “Metropolitan Hospitals & Medical Schools”, in The Lancet, volume 62, number 1568, →DOI, page 268
  4. (by ellipsis) One run scored by hitting the ball and running between the wickets; a single.
  5. (by ellipsis) A joke or amusing anecdote.
    • Did you hear the one about the agnostic dyslexic insomniac?
  6. (by ellipsis) A question.
    • You already know, so you can answer that one yourselves
  7. (by ellipsis) An alcoholic drink, especially a pint or can of beer.
    • I had a quick one after work
    • There’s nothing better than drinking a cold one when the weather’s boiling outside
  8. (by ellipsis) An act of sexual intercourse.
    • Just a quick one before work
  9. A person or thing (having some specified characteristic or attribute).
    • Now, he's a curious one.
    • Well, well, well, it seems the silent one does have a voice, after all.
    Synonyms:
    sort, type
    1. A person with a tendency to do something.
      • He's not one for pulling his punches.
      • Pause. They look meaningly at one another. / "You are a one for being roundabout," says the lady.1905, H[erbert] G[eorge] Wells, Kipps: The Story of a Simple Soul, London: Macmillan and Co., Limited, page 55
    2. (archaic, endearing, ironic, following an adjective) A term of address.
      • Oh, most merciful one!
      • Hey, sleepy one.
  10. (colloquial) A particularly special or compatible person or thing.
    • I knew as soon I met him that John was the one for me and we were married within a month.
    • That car's the one — I'll buy it.
  11. (dated, derogatory, euphemistic) A gay person.
    • Finally got Ollie Martin. He couldn't have more poise, and what do I care if he is one?1933 March 25, Dorothy Parker, “The Diary of a Lady”, in The New Yorker, page 13
  12. The identity element with respect to multiplication in a ring.
    Synonyms:
    unity

Adjective

one (not comparable)

  1. Of a period of time, being particular.
    • One day the prince set forth to kill the dragon that had brought terror to his father’s kingdom for centuries.
    • One morning I had been driven to the precarious refuge afforded by the steps of the inn, after rejecting offers from the Celebrity to join him in a variety of amusements. But even here I was not free from interruption, for he was seated on a horse-block below me, playing with a fox terrier.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter IV, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC
  2. Being a single, unspecified thing; a; any.
    • My aunt used to say, "One day is just like the other."
  3. Sole, only.
    • He is the one man who can help you.
    • The one male audience member at the concert is invited on stage.
  4. Whole, entire.
    • Body and soul are not separate; they are one.
  5. In agreement.
    • We are one on the importance of learning.
  6. The same.
    • The two types look very different, but are one species.

Determiner

one

  1. A single.
    • There was one box of biscuits available.
    Antonyms:
    zero, no, a few, a couple of, a handful of, several, multiple, various, many, numerous
  2. Being a preeminent example.
    • He is one hell of a guy.
  3. Being an unknown person with the specified name; see also “a certain”.
    • The town records from 1843 showed the overnight incarceration of one “A. Lincoln”.

Verb

one (third-person singular simple present ones, present participle oning, simple past and past participle oned)

  1. (transitive) To cause to become one; to gather into a single whole; to unite.
    • The question, of course, evokes discernment, not dogma, but we should note that the "unknowing" involves intellectual knowledge, whereas the problematic of being "oned" involves experiential knowledge.1994, Christopher Nugent, Mysticism, Death and Dying, page 55
    • And both shall be oned in eternal happiness.2000, Carolyn Baker, The Journey of Forgiveness: Fulfilling the Healing Process, page 145

Particle

one

  1. (Manglish, Singlish) Used at the end of a sentence to highlight the characteristics of someone or something.
    • Got almonds one.
    • How come so heavy one ah?
  2. (Manglish, Singlish) Used at the end of a sentence to highlight the originator of something.
    • My friend send one.
    • Who say one?
  3. (Manglish, Singlish) Used at the end of a sentence to highlight the likelihood of something occurring, as a characteristic of something else.
    • Can easily get lost one, know?
  4. (Manglish, Singlish) A nominalizer used to form a noun phrase without a head noun.
    • The sell fruits one go home already.

Pronoun (2)

one

  1. (Manglish, Singlish, uncommon) Used as a relative pronoun at the end of a relative clause.
    • The bird that make a lot of noise one is gone already.

Noun (2) capitalized: One

One

  1. (honorific) Honorific alternative letter-case form of one, sometimes used when referring to God or another important figure who is understood from context.
    • And He died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the One who died for them and was raised.2003, John R. Kohlenberger III, The Evangelical Parallel New Testament, 1196
    • Hopefully, after reading this chapter, this reflection upon Christianity versus skepticism will cause each of us to contemplate more critically upon the One who died for us so that we might live for Him.2009, Dallas R. Burdette, Biblical Preaching and Teaching, pages 128-129

Also used as

one is also the deliberate misspelling of !.

one meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

one in Hindi

cardinal number 1
एक ek, इक ik
impersonal pronoun; one thing or person
वो vo, ये ye
indefinite personal pronoun; any person, people in general
आदम ādam, एक ek
digit or figure
एक ek

one in Tamil

cardinal number 1
ஒன்று oṉṟu, ஒண்ணு oṇṇu, ஒன்னு oṉṉu

one in Marathi

cardinal number 1
एक ek

one in Urdu

cardinal number 1
ایک ek, ١
digit or figure
ایک aek
More languagesFewer languages
one in Bengali
এক ek
one in Telugu
ఒకటి okaṭi, ఒండు oṇḍu
one in Malayalam
ഒന്നു onnu, ഒന്ന് onnŭ, ഒരാൾ orāḷ, ഒരു oru
one in Kannada
ಒಂದು ondu
one in Punjabi
ਇੱਕ ikka, ੧
one in Gujarati
એક eka
one in Odia
ଏକ eka
one in Sanskrit
एक eka
one in Sinhala
එක eka
one in Assamese
এক ek
one in Nepali
एक ek
one in Pashto
یو yaw, يو yaw
one in Tagalog
isa, uno
one in Arabic
وَاحِد wāḥid, وَاحِدَة wāḥida, ١, واحد wāḥed
one in Malay
satu, esa, se, tunggal
one in Indonesian
satu, suatu, kesatuan, setuju
one in Persian
یَک yak, ١, یِک yek, یک yek
one in Thai
หนึ่ง nʉ̀ng, ๑
one in Vietnamese
một, thứ, cái, loại
one in Myanmar
တစ် tac, ၁
Sindhi
هڪ hik, هِڪُ hiku
Dhivehi
އެއް ek̊
Dzongkha
གཅིག gcig

Examples of one in a sentence

  • One person, one vote.
  • A good driver is one who drives carefully.
  • Can I borrow an eraser? — Sorry pal, I haven't got one.
  • He's not one to pull his punches.
  • She's never been one for the quick comeback.
  • That's the one to watch if you want to win.

All 40 example sentences with one

Synonyms of one

2 more synonymsFewer synonyms

Antonyms

1 more antonymsFewer antonyms

All synonyms and antonyms of one

Forms of one

Numeral
alternative form1
alternative formI
alternative form (obsolete)wone
Pronoun
reflexiveoneself
adjective possessiveone's
pluralones
Noun
pluralones
Verb
third-person singular presentones
present participleoning
past participleoned
pastoned

Plural of one: ones

Origin of one

PIE word *h₁óynos Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ís? Proto-Indo-European *h₁óynos Proto-Germanic *ainaz Proto-West Germanic *ain Old English ān Middle English on English one From Middle English oon, on, oan, an, from Old English ān (“one”), from Proto-West Germanic *ain, from Proto-Germanic *ainaz (“one”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁óynos (“single, one”). Doublet of a, an, and Uno. Cognate with Scots ae, ane, wan, yin (“one”); North Frisian ån (“one”); Saterland Frisian aan (“one”); West Frisian ien (“one”); Dutch een, één (“one”); German Low German een; German ein, eins (“one”); Danish en (“one”); Swedish en (“one”); Norwegian Nynorsk ein (“one”), Icelandic einn (“one”); Latin ūnus (“one”) (Old Latin oinos); Russian оди́н (odín), Spanish uno. False cognate of Malayalam ഒന്ന് (onnŭ), Tamil ஒன்னு (oṉṉu), ஒண்ணு (oṇṇu), ஒன்று (oṉṟu). The use as an indefinite personal pronoun may have been influenced by unrelated French on, although the Germanic languages widely use cognates for the same sense (usually in non-subject function, but also in subject function, e.g. Luxembourgish een). Verb form from Middle English onen.

Analogous to several senses of Hokkien 個／个 (ê) and Mandarin 的 (de, declarative particle, nominalizer, etc.). This semantic loan might have stemmed from the apparent similarity between one as a prop-word and 的 (de) or 個 /个 (ê) as a nominalizer (e.g. 青色的 (“the green one”)). Compare Cantonese 嘅 (ge³).

Words formed from one

Phrases with one

169 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with one

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about one

What does one mean?
One means the number represented by the Arabic numeral 1; the numerical value equal to that cardinal number.
What is one in Hindi?
One in Hindi is एक (ek), इक (ik), वो (vo). See One meaning in Hindi.
How do you use one in a sentence?
One person, one vote.
What part of speech is one?
One can be a numeral, a pronoun, a noun or an adjective.
How do you pronounce one?
One is pronounced /wʌn/ (UK).

Words near one in the dictionary

  1. Ondrusek
  2. ondulate
  3. ondulatory
  4. ondy
  5. ondé
  6. one
  7. one after another
  8. one after the other
  9. one age with
  10. one and a half
  11. one and a half syndrome

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: one (page history and authors); One (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.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-one.ogg.

Cite this entry: “one.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/one. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.