one on one
Direct, no intermediary
One on one describes direct interaction between two people, without others present.
It can mean a private meeting I had a one-on-one with my manager, individual instruction one-on-one tutoring, or a head-to-head contest They went one on one in the final round.
The phrase emphasizes personal, unmediated engagement between exactly two parties.
- man-to-manDirect and honest
- mano a manoDirect personal competition
- eyeball to eyeballIn direct confrontation
- personalRelating to one's self
- heart-to-heartSincere personal discussion
direct · head to head · conversation · person-to-person · mentoring · tutoring · engagement · face to face · duel · coaching · private lesson · personal training · face-to-face · individual · interaction · encounter · tête-à-tête · private
- Team Formatssingles, doubles, pairs, trio, quartet
- competitioncompete, competitor, contender, winner, sports
- two-player gameschess, checkers, backgammon, tic-tac-toe, Connect Four
- action filmschase scene, car chase, explosion, stunt, shootout
- talk showstalk shows, late night, late-night, guest host, panel show
- combat drillsbayonet charge, combat stance, military drill, precision drill, basic training
one on onegroup
Assembled collection of things
group session · team meeting · collective · group discussion · many-to-many
one on onebroadcast
Transmitted media signal
mass communication · one-to-many · impersonal · anonymous · mass mailing
one on onepublic forum
Space for collective discourse
open meeting · public · communal · open session · plenary