once upon a time

phrase

: at some time in the past

He was a famous actor once upon a time.

Note: Once upon a time is the traditional way to begin a fairy tale.

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess named Snow White.

Examples of once upon a time in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Sure, once upon a time, a starting lineup of Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, LeBron James, Draymond Green and Kristaps Porzingis would have beaten almost anybody. — Mirjam Swanson, Los Angeles Times, 22 July 2026

Indeed, once upon a time, famed investor Ray Dalio warned Musk against committing too fully to the space race. — Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 22 July 2026

Someone had a sign in the crowd that said Hensley had given her a concussion in a youth soccer game once upon a time. — Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 16 Mar. 2026

Carefully avoiding quick judgement and slowly uncovering a long history of violence, injustices and destruction, the young filmmaker exposes the deep sadness of a once upon a time joyful and prosperous environment. — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 15 Mar. 2026

Rhymes for once upon a time

• aforetime
• allozyme
• anytime
• christmastime
• cybercrime
• dinnertime
• guggenheim
• isozyme
• lysozyme
• maritime
• mesenchyme
• overtime