once upon a time

idiom

: 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

Whereas once upon a time vampy dark shades and glamorous reds were the order of the evening, barely-there pinks and muted flesh tones were about as dramatic as things got at the ceremony, with many celebrities opting for nothing at all. —Georgia Day, Vogue, 11 Mar. 2024

The presence of liquid water once upon a time points to a balmy environment that could have been habitable. —Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Feb. 2024

The Ravens will have plenty of work to do on their defense this offseason, but Smith and Hamilton are elite building blocks, much as Ray Lewis and Ed Reed were once upon a time. —Childs Walker, Baltimore Sun, 29 Jan. 2024

There’s also a guest house on-site, which once upon a time was the original home in 1910. —Angel Saunders, Peoplemag, 1 Feb. 2024

But what Mainers will absolutely agree on is that this area that once upon a time truly shut down for the winter months simply doesn't any more. —Todd Plummer, Condé Nast Traveler, 31 Jan. 2024

That last group includes prospects such as Alvarez, a 5-9, 185-pound, switch-hitting infielder who once upon a time delayed his chance to pursue a professional baseball career in order to live out a juxtaposing athletic dream. Cleats, bats and gloves were replaced with a pair of skates. —Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024

And Purdue-Washington in 2001, so special to Emily, because her dad called that one once upon a time, at their first Rose Bowl together. —Mirjam Swanson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Dec. 2023

Yes, once upon a time—in 2014, to be exact—Ben Affleck was caught holding…Starbucks. —Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 7 Nov. 2023