once (redirected from once for all)

*once-over

a quick, visual examination. (*Typically: get ~; give someone ~.) Every time John walks by I get the once-over. Does he like me? I went to the doctor yesterday, but I only had a once-over.

(every) now and then and (every) now and again; (every) once in a while

occasionally; infrequently. We eat lamb every now and then. We eat pork now and then. I read a novel every now and again.

See also: and, now

all at once 

1. Lit. all at the same time. The entire group spoke all at once.

2. Fig. suddenly. All at once the little girl fell out of her chair.

at once

immediately; right now. We must leave at once! You must come here at once; it is an emergency.

Christmas comes but once a year.

Prov. Since Christmas only happens once a year, we should treat it as a special time by being good to others or by indulging children. Christmas comes but once a year, so we urge you to give to those less fortunate through this Christmas charity campaign.

See also: but, Christmas, come, year

difficult is done at once; the impossible takes a little longer

Prov. Tasks that are only difficult are done immediately, harder tasks take longer. (Describes a very competent group or person.) The secretary in our office is extremely capable. She has a little sign on her desk that says, "The difficult is done at once; the impossible takes a little longer." In her case, it's not a joke.

See also: difficult, done, little, take

Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.

Prov. After being tricked once, one should be wary, so that the person cannot trick you again. Fred: Would you like a can of peanuts? Jane: The last can of peanuts you gave me had a toy snake in it. Fred: This one really is peanuts. Jane: Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.

See also: fool, shame

if I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times

Fig. an expression that introduces a scolding, usually to a child. Mother: If I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times, don't leave your clothes in a pile on the floor! Bill: Sorry. "If I've toldyou once, I've told you a thousand times, keep out of my study!" yelled Bob.

See also: if, thousand, times, told

now and then

sometimes; occasionally. (See also (every) now and then.) I like to go to a movie now and then. We visit my parents now and then, but we rarely see our other relatives.

See also: and, now

Once a priest, always a priest, and Once a whore, always a whore.

Prov. A person who has done a certain kind of job will always have the characteristics of people who do that job, even after he or she no longer does that kind of work. (This can be applied to many different occupations.) Alan: My cousin left the clergy, but boy! He still preaches at me all the time. Jane: Once a priest, always a priest, huh?

See also: always

once and for all

finally; permanently. Sue: I'm going to get this place organized once and for all! Alice: That'll be the day! "We need to get this straightened out once and for all," said Bob, for the fourth time today.

See also: and

Once bitten, twice shy.

Prov. When something or someone has hurt you once, you tend to avoid that thing or person. Jill: Let's go ride the roller coaster. Jane: No, thanks. I got really sick on one of those once—once bitten, twice shy. I once sent in money for something I saw advertised in the back of a magazine, but the merchandise was of such poor quality I was sorry I'd bought it. I'll never buy anything that way again; once bitten, twice shy.

See also: shy, twice

once in a blue moon

Cliché very seldom. Jill: Does your husband ever bring you flowers? Ellen: Once in a blue moon. Once in a blue moon, I buy a fashion magazine, just to see what people are wearing.

See also: blue, moon

once more and one more time

Please do it one more time. Mary: You sang that line beautifully, Fred. Now, once more. Fred: I'm really tired of all this rehearsing. John (finishing practicing his speech): How was that? Sue: Good! One more time, though. John: I'm getting bored with it.

See also: more

once upon a time

Cliché once in the past. (A formula used to begin a fairy tale.) Once upon a time, there were three bears. Once upon a time, I had a puppy of my own.

See also: time, upon

once-in-a-lifetime chance and once-in-a-lifetime opportunity

a chance that will never occur again in one's lifetime. This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance. Don't miss it. She offered me a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but I turned it down.

See also: chance

once-over-lightly 

1. Fig. a quick and careless treatment. (A noun. Said of an act of cleaning, studying, examination, or appraisal.) Bill gave his geometry the once-over-lightly and then quit studying. Ann, you didn't wash the dishes properly. They only got a once-over-lightly.

2. Fig. cursory; in a quick and careless manner. (An adverb.) Tom studied geometry once-over-lightly. Ann washed the dishes once-over-lightly.

One cannot be in two places at once.

Prov. You cannot be in more than one place or do more than one thing at the same time. Child: Mom! Mom! Come help me wash my hair! Mother: Just a minute! I'm putting clean sheets on your bed right now, and I can't be in two places at once.

See also: cannot, one, place, two

Opportunity knocks but once

.Prov. You will only have one chance to do something important or profitable. (You can say opportunity knocks to signal that someone's chance to do something important is here right now.) When Nancy got a scholarship offer from a college far away, her parents encouraged her to go, even though they didn't like the thought of her moving so far from home. "Opportunity knocks but once," they said, "and this may be your only chance to get a good education."

See also: but, knock, opportunity

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give somebody/something the once-over  (informal)

to quickly look at someone or examine something in order to see what they are like The security guard gave me the once-over but didn't bother checking my pass. Can you give my essay the once-over before I hand it in?

See also: give

give something a once-over  (informal)

to clean something quickly (often + with ) I'll just give the carpet a once-over with the vacuum cleaner before we go.

See also: give

once and for all

if you do something once and for all, you finish doing it so that it does not have to be dealt with again I'm fed up with arguing about this - let's just settle this argument once and for all. He claims his photographs prove once and for all that UFOs do exist.

See also: and

Once bitten, twice shy.

something that you say which means when you have had an unpleasant experience you are much more careful to avoid similar experiences in the future After he left her she refused to go out with anyone else for a long time - once bitten, twice shy, I suppose.

See also: shy, twice

once in a blue moon

very rarely My sister lives in Alaska, so I only get to see her once in a blue moon. I don't know why I bought that CD-ROM for my computer - I only ever use it once in a blue moon.

See once in a lifetime, once upon a time

See also: blue, moon

once in a lifetime

only likely to happen once in someone's life Opportunities to play in the Cup Final only come once in a lifetime so we've got to make the most of it.

See also: lifetime

once upon a time  (literary)

1. a long time ago

Usage notes: This phrase is often used as a way of beginning children's stories.

Once upon a time there lived a young girl called Cinderella.

2. if you say that something happened once upon a time, you mean that it happened in the past and you wish that it still happened now Once upon a time, everyone knew each other in this town and nobody bothered locking their doors.

See also: time, upon

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(every) now and then also (every) now and again

sometimes We still meet for lunch now and then, but not as often as we used to. Every now and then I'll take the kids to the playground.

Related vocabulary: every so often

See also: and, now

(every) once in a while

sometimes every so often Every once in a while I've been tempted to take an art class.

Related vocabulary: (every) now and then

all at once

1. happening or done quickly and without any warning all of a sudden All at once I felt dizzy and had to lie down.

2. at the same time I've had to deal with too many problems all at once.

at once

1. immediately They were told to leave the building at once.

2. at the same time Everything happened at once, so I didn't have time to ask for advice.

give somebody/something the once-over

to quickly look at someone or something in order to make a judgment The security guard gave me the once-over but didn't bother checking my pass. Can you give my list the once-over before I hand it in?

See also: give

once again also once more

another time I'll explain it once again, but please listen carefully this time.

See also: again

once and for all

completely and finally I wish we could settle the matter once and for all.

See also: and

once in a blue moon (spoken)

almost never Once in a blue moon I'll have a beer with friends, but it's not my regular drink.

Etymology: based on the informal phrase blue moon (the second time in one month that you can see the full disk of the moon )

See also: blue, moon

once upon a time

long ago I had worked for some big companies once upon a time, but later I was self-employed.

Usage notes: often used to begin a children's story: Once upon a time, in a far-off kingdom, there lived a beautiful princess.

See also: time, upon