all at once
Idioms-
All at the same time, as in We can't get inside all at once, so please wait your turn . [Late 1300s]
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Suddenly, unexpectedly, as in All at once the sky darkened . For a synonym, see all of a sudden .
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Part of the thinking behind this was that these factors were not drawn on separately in a match but instead all at once.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
It’s an old joke, told most often about the French, but the idea of crisis in everything, everywhere, all at once is so pervasive that it seems we have become a humorless parody of ourselves.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026
Not all at once, obviously, though I respect the chaos.
From Salon ● Sep. 28, 2026
Everything he’d been pointing towards in the distance was now here, culminating all at once.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026
And then all at once there was a clanging out in the corridor.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
