Category:Nonce

Nonce, n. Etym: [for the nonce, oe. for the nones, a corruption of For then ones, where n. in then is a relic of as. m in, dat. of the Article and demonstrative pronoun, e. the. See for, once, and the.]

Defn: the one or single occasion; the present call or purpose; -- Chiefly used in the phrase for the nonce. The miller was a stout carl for the nones. Chaucer. And that he calls for drink, i 'll have prepared him a chalice for The nonce. Shak. Nonce word, "a word apparently employed only for the nonce". Murray (new english dict. ).