"it was this way" meaning in English

{
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "phrase"
      },
      "expansion": "it was this way",
      "name": "head"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "phrase",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A traditional beginning to a story."
      ],
      "id": "en-it_was_this_way-en-phrase-0QzzhqHP",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(dated) A traditional beginning to a story."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "once upon a time"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dated"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "it was this way"
}

{
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "phrase"
      },
      "expansion": "it was this way",
      "name": "head"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "phrase",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English dated terms",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English phrases"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A traditional beginning to a story."
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(dated) A traditional beginning to a story."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dated"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "once upon a time"
    }
  ],
  "word": "it was this way"
}