nëa (1) "once, at one time" (in the past) (VT49:31). Also néya.
Adûnaic
tâidô
adverb. once, then
Quenya
nëa
once, at one time
Beware, older languages below! The languages below were invented during Tolkien's earlier period and should be used with caution. Remember to never, ever mix words from different languages!
Early Quenya
eru
adverb. once
An adverb glossed as both “once” and “then” (SD/247, VT24/12). Several authors have suggested (AAD/23, EotAL/TA3) that the final element may be îdô “now”. Andreas Moehn suggested (EotAL/TA3) the initial element tâ is a marker that puts it into the past: îdô = “now”, tâ-îdô = “previous time” = “then”. It seems likelier to me that the prefix is related to the Eldarin demonstrative root √TA “that, there, then”, as suggested by Carl Hostetter and Patrick Wynn (AAD/23): tâ-îdô = “that time” = “then”.
Conceptual Development: In the second draft of the Lament of Akallabêth, this word was ēluk (SD/312).