Translation
once; formerly; one day
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Examples
.
I once lived in this city.
regnabat.
Once a king reigned here.
iuvabit.
One day it will be a pleasure to remember these things.
.
Once everything was different.
.
One day the day will come.
is built on the old stem of and means, at bottom, "at that time". Which direction "that" points is left to the tense of the verb, and this is the thing to hold on to: with a past tense looks back, "once, formerly", and with a future it looks forward, "one day, some day".
Virgil gets his most quoted line out of exactly that reach: forsan iuvabit, perhaps one day it will please us to remember even this. Do not translate it as "long ago" by default, and do not assume it fixes a distance in time at all: it is vague on purpose. It is also the standard opening of a story, Latin's "once upon a time".
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Latin · Free printables
olim: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Latin word "olim" (once; formerly; one day): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
This word is taught in chapter 2, lesson 9: olim, quin, longe and 7 more words.