Word.ws English Dictionary

How to use once in a sentence

40 example sentences · adverb, conjunction

Once means one and only one time. Example: “I have only once eaten pizza.”

Examples of once by meaning

adverbOne and only one time.

  • I have only once eaten pizza.

adverbFormerly; during some period in the past.

  • He was once the most handsome man around.
  • I once had a motorbicycle.
  • Once I didn't drive a big car, but now I own an all-terrain 4WD.

adverbAt any time; ever.

  • If the facts once became known, we'd be in trouble.
  • Once bring in the police and what is inevitably bound to follow?1934, Ernest Bramah, The Bravo of London

adverbMultiplied by one: indicating that a number is multiplied by one.

  • Once three is three.

conjunctionAs 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.

More sentences with once

  • Your feet will soon warm up once your socks are on.From the entry on
  • Today is the day we'll fix this once and for all.From the entry today
  • Mars goes around the sun once in a Martian year, or 1.88 Earth years.From the entry year
  • The club that is now mostly used for golf was once a common weapon.From the entry weapon
  • Seeing how ill she was, we sent for a doctor at once.From the entry send
  • Christmas comes but once a year, so we can but wait till then.From the entry but
  • This is a first. For once he has nothing to say.From the entry first
  • Once arrested, I realized that handcuffs are concrete, even if my concept of what is legal wasn't.From the entry concrete
  • Once the billet gets through the 56-inch mill, it is ready for reheating.From the entry mill
  • My life will be complete once I buy this new television.From the entry complete
  • He once owned a painting of the house, which painting would later be stolen.From the entry which
  • He was bidding for the chance to coach his team to victory once again.From the entry bid
  • We'll drive the enemy from these lands once and for all.From the entry drive
  • With that said, the group hitting their legs just once a week still made gains.From the entry hit
  • I'm not paid to do all this paperwork for you. I will do it this once, though.From the entry though
  • Every once in a while, though, Idol comes across an unusual talent who just blows everyone away.From the entry unusual
  • Looking inside the cover, they learned that the book had once belonged to a certain R. Jones.From the entry certain
  • The going will be easier once we're through these mountains and onto the flat.From the entry flat
  • Britain is no longer the maritime power that it once was.From the entry power
  • Once the My Computer dialogue opens, select Local Disk (C:), then right click and scroll down.From the entry dialogue
  • Once he ran out of appeals, he knew he would soon feel the sting of the whip.From the entry whip
  • I could hear the engine’s valves hammering once the timing rod was thrown.From the entry hammer
  • Let's try to put this question to rest once and for all.From the entry put to rest
  • The laminate adhesive has very aggressive tack and is hard to move once in place.From the entry tack
  • According to his legend, he once worked for the Red Cross, spreading humanitarian aid in Africa.From the entry legend
  • A good grape grower will prune the vines once a year.From the entry prune
  • Once this factory comes online, it will double car production in our country!From the entry online
  • Switches only happen once every couple weeks for us, but they're quite sudden when they happen.From the entry switch
  • That man is going to be a big risk once he's out of prison.From the entry risk
  • Remember to turn the tap off once you've finished so you don't waste water.From the entry turn off

Meaning of once

  1. adverb One and only one time.
  2. adverb Formerly; during some period in the past.
  3. adverb At any time; ever.

Full definition of once

Questions about once in a sentence

How do you use once in a sentence?
Once is used as an adverb and conjunction. For example: “I have only once eaten pizza.”
What is a short sentence with once?
“Once three is three.”
What does once mean?
Once means one and only one time.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: once (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “How to use once in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/once. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.