When do we use online as one word and when as two words?
For example, do we say :"I want to go online or on line?"
Learn English – Difference between online and on line
word-difference
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Best Answer
When the internet was more of a novelty, it seems like both forms were used. The two words were often hyphenated as well. For example, the following is a screen shot from a 1997 book entitled The Future of Money in the Information Age.
And a 1992 book reads:
That said, it looks like the single-word form is winning out, though. It's far easier to find examples where online is a single word. Check out the Ngram.
It may be worth noting that such neologisms are not uncommon in the technology realm; here is a similar Ngram showing how username is becoming a single word.