at once

Questions about at once

What is another word for at once?

It depends which at once you mean. In the sense “without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening”, the synonyms are immediately, instantly, straightaway, straight off, directly, now, right away, forthwith, like a shot. Across all 2 senses there are 11 distinct synonyms, and they are not interchangeable with each other — this page lists them under the sense each one belongs to.

What is the opposite of at once?

WordNet records no antonym for at once. Antonymy in WordNet is a relation between specific word forms rather than between concepts, so it is recorded only where lexicographers judged the pairing direct. An absence here means none was recorded, not that none can be imagined.

Why are the synonyms for at once split into groups?

Because at once carries 2 recorded senses and each has its own set of substitutes. A single flat list would put words from unrelated meanings side by side with nothing to tell them apart, which is exactly how a writer picks the wrong one. The grouping comes from WordNet's synsets, not from an editorial judgement of ours.

Where do the synonyms for at once come from?

From Princeton University's WordNet, a lexical database maintained by lexicographers since 1985. A synonym here means a word form that shares a synset with this word — a set of forms interchangeable in one recorded context. Nothing on this page is generated by a language model.

Other views of at once

• Full entry for at onceAll 2 senses, with examples, usage labels, syllables and pronunciation.
• Rhymes for at onceWhether this word can be rhymed at all — it is not in the pronouncing dictionary.
• Thesaurus homeHow WordNet synsets work, and the collections built for synonym work.