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"once (one time)" in seven languages

Meaningonce (one time)

Spanish

una vez

/ˈuna beθ/

inherited

French

une fois

/yn fwa/

inherited

Fois comes from the plural VICES.

Italian

una volta

/ˈuna ˈvɔlta/

other source · Vulgar Latin *VOLVITA 'a turn', from VOLVERE 'to roll'

Portuguese

uma vez

/ˈumɐ ves/

inherited

Romanian

o dată

/o ˈdatə/

other source · dată 'given time' (Latin DATAM 'given')

Catalan

una vegada

/ˈunə bəˈɡadə/

inherited

Vegada comes from a spoken Latin derivative of VICEM; un cop is just as common.

English

once

/wʌns/

native English · Old English ānes

English → Italianonce (one time)una voltaNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: vice-president, vicar, vicissitude.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

VICEM‘turn, alternation’

All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.

The story

Every sister counts occasions as 'turns': VICEM gave vez and fois, while Italian volta is a turn of the wheel. Fairy tales start the same way: érase una vez, il était une fois, c'era una volta.

English relatives: vice-president, vicar, vicissitude

Sound laws at work

C before E and IB and V merge in Spanish

Learn it

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In a sentence

  • esHe estado en Roma una vez.
  • frJe suis allé à Rome une fois.
  • itSono stato a Roma una volta.
  • ptEstive em Roma uma vez.
  • roAm fost o dată la Roma.
  • caHe estat a Roma una vegada.
  • enI've been to Rome once.

More words from the same Latin

More in Time

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