Nonce
Nonce (nons) , noun
[For the nonce, Old English for the nones, a corruption of for then ones, where n. in then is a relic of Anglo-Saxon m in eam, dat. of the article and demonstrative pronoun, English the. See For, Once, and The.]
The one or single occasion; the present call or purpose; -- chiefly used in the phrase for the nonce, that is for the present time.
The miller was a stout carl for the nones.
And that he calls for drink, I 'll have prepared him
A chalice for the nonce.
Collocations (1)
Nonce word , “a word apparently employed only for the nonce”. — Murray (New English Dict.)