once upon a time vs Once a time

The correct phrase is 'once upon a time.' 'Once upon a time' is a common phrase used to begin fairy tales or stories. On the other hand, 'once a time' is not a standard phrase in English and does not convey the same meaning.

Last updated: March 30, 2024 • 1299 views

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to begin fairy tales or stories.

"once upon a time"

This phrase is used to introduce a story or fairy tale. It sets the stage for a narrative that is about to unfold.

Examples:

Once upon a time, in a faraway kingdom...
Once upon a time, there was a brave knight...
Once upon a time, a little girl found a magic lamp...
Once upon a time, a wicked witch cast a spell...
Once upon a time, a beautiful princess lived in a castle...

Show examples from the web [+]

Because once upon a time, a dear friend did the same exact thing for me.
Well, once upon a time, there was a lovely princess, and she lived in a kingdom ruled by evil men.
You were thick as thieves once upon a time.
Nowadays, technology leads to unemployment, whereas once upon a time it created employment.
Whatever Apollo might have been once upon a time...
I actually thought he was, once upon a time.
I was the family disappointment once upon a time.
I had quite a sizeable family once upon a time.
All I know is that, once upon a time, you wanted to walk in the woods with important people, and now, instead you're here.
I stayed in places exactly this once upon a time, in my wilderness years.
As I told you once upon a time... it's a chick thing.
I mean, she did have something on the ball once upon a time.
Now, that's a letter, once upon a time I would have found offensively dull.
I'm doing a movie with Pete berg and once upon a time he said we should meet.
I probably should have fired you once upon a time, but I don't want to fire you.
I partnered up with a youngling, once upon a time, by the name of Bill Allson.
I mean, sure, once upon a time, that special boy did call.
So your wife tells me you were pretty good at this once upon a time.
I actually think there used to be some shutters here once upon a time.
My parents, they hit me pretty hard once upon a time.

This phrase is not a standard or commonly used expression in English.

"Once a time"

Show examples from the web [+]

Madam President, I would have liked to say that there was once a time when people believed that the environment destroyed employment.
According to legend there was once a time when Master Shifu actually used to smile.
There was once a time for that law, but not anymore.
Once a time he was in a chair, the next...
There was once a time when people did bold things to open the frontier.
There was once a time when most people didn't know who Christopher Columbus was, but then he was born.
That happens once a time in your life.
There was once a time when people didn't think that I had what it took either, but I proved them wrong.
We must recognise that there was once a time when the pro-European movement had a heart and soul.
I was just sitting over here on the couch and I was thinking, that there was once a time when Mark used to be the stranger in the house.
There was once a time, Mrs. Sumner... when you were ready to beg me for it.
Remember there was once a time when you wanted every limb in play.
There was once a time when people didn't think that I had what it took either, but I proved them wrong.
Mr President, we sometimes forget that there was once a time when, wherever you went in Europe, immigration officials would stamp your passport.

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once upon a time vs Once a time

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