one-shot

adjective

ˈwən-ˌshät 

1

: that is complete or effective through being done or used or applied only once

There is no easy one-shot answer to the problem.

2

: that is not followed by something else of the same kind

a one-shot tax cut

one-shot noun

Synonyms of one-shot

• occasional
• one-off

Examples of one-shot in a Sentence

this offer is a one-shot deal; if you refuse, you won't get another chance

Recent Examples on the Web

This is one of the cleanest one-shots in Visions' entire three-season run so far, and it's told with lots of composure. —Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 29 Oct. 2025

The majority of the action, however, unfolds in a claustrophobic one-shot inside a tent, with our heroes quaking at the whoops and cries surrounding them. —Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 18 Oct. 2025

Only once has a rival broadcast siphoned off a significant number of Super Bowl viewers, and that was a one-shot deal. —Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 17 Oct. 2025

French filmmaker David Moreau’s MadS is in some ways the platonic ideal of the one-shot film, using the lack of cuts to create a sense of propulsion and relentlessness that mirrors its characters’ descent into hell. —Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1907, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for one-shot

• aeronaut
• aforethought
• afterthought
• apricot
• argonaut
• astronaut
• camelot
• coffeepot
• concordat
• cosmonaut
• entrepot
• flowerpot