Meaning & use
once for all
Last updated
Meaning
phrasefixed phraseformal
Finally and completely, so that something does not need to be dealt with again.
Grammar: Used as an adverbial phrase, often at the end of a clause: 'We must settle this once for all.'
Patterns
- settle something once for all
- decide something once for all
The committee hoped to resolve the matter once for all at their next meeting.
He wanted to prove his innocence once for all.
Let's finish this argument once for all.
Common combinations
- settle something once for all
- The new law aims to settle the dispute once for all.
- decide once for all
- We need to decide once for all whether to move or stay.
- put an end to something once for all
- The treaty put an end to the conflict once for all.
Synonyms and how they differ
- once and for all
- This is the standard modern phrase, used in both formal and informal contexts; 'once for all' sounds old-fashioned or very formal.
- finally
- It means 'at last' and does not carry the idea of making something permanent or conclusive.
Opposites
Commonly confused: once for all or once and for all?
once for all vs once and for all
This is the usual form today. 'Once for all' without 'and' is rare and may sound like a mistake to many speakers.
Practice
The two countries signed a peace treaty to end the war ___.
Choose one answer.
The standard modern idiom is 'once and for all', meaning completely and finally. 'Once for all' is an older, formal variant; 'once at all' and 'once in all' are not English phrases.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “once for all”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.