一度に
いちどに · ichidoni · JLPT N3 · adverb
all at once
💥 一度に = 一 one + 度 time + に at: at one time, so all at once
度 counts occasions, so 一度 means one time. Adding に turns it into an adverb, at one go. Example: 一度に食べる means to eat it all at once.
一 — single horizontal stroke
一 is one of the simplest pictographs in Chinese, depicting a single horizontal line to represent the number one. It has retained essentially the same form since oracle bone script over 3,000 years ago. By extension it also means 'first,' 'whole,' or 'same.'
度 — 广 (shelter) + 庶 abbreviated (phonetic)
Originally depicted a hand measuring length under a shelter, meaning 'to measure' or 'a measure/standard.' From this came extended senses like 'degree,' 'extent,' and 'to pass through' (as in passing time). The reading 'dù' means degree/measure, while 'duó' preserves the older verbal sense of measuring.