Ways to say "only"
だけ is the plain "only". It fits almost anywhere, so it is the one to start with. Most of the other forms add an opinion: that there is too little, that there is too much of one thing, or that something doesn't amount to much. のみ adds nothing: it is だけ for signs and formal writing.
| Form | What it says | Where |
|---|---|---|
| だけ | Only this, stated plainly | Everyday |
| しか～ない | Nothing except this; often too little | Everyday |
| ばかり | A lot of one thing, usually too much | Everyday |
| のみ | The same as だけ | Signs, forms, formal writing |
| きり | Only this many, and no more | Everyday, in a few set words |
| にすぎない | Merely: it doesn't amount to much | News, reports, essays |
| でしかない | Merely, said bluntly | Essays, criticism, frank talk |
| たった | Before an amount: small in your eyes | Everyday |
だけ: only this
Full pageだけN5
だけ goes right after the word it limits, where English puts "only" in front. It states the limit and stops there. After a verb it is "just": that is all you do, or all that happened.
I drank only one glass of water.
I work only on Sundays.
No, I'm just looking.
In a shop, when staff offer to help.
しか～ない: nothing except this
Full pageしか～ないN4
The verb after しか is always negative, and the sentence still means "only": take it as "nothing except".
I can only speak a little Japanese.
English says "can only". Japanese says しか and "can't".
With an amount, しか usually says it is less than you wanted. だけ just states the amount.
I have just one thousand yen in my wallet.
What you have. It may be all you need.
I only have one thousand yen in my wallet.
The same money, said by someone who needs more.
In a rule or a plain fact, しか has no disappointment in it. It just shuts out everything else.
At this shop, you can only use cash.
ばかり: too much of one thing
Full pageばかりN3
ばかり says that one thing keeps turning up, and usually that you think it is too much. Like "nothing but" in English, it is not literal: there may be other things as well. In conversation it is often ばっかり.
Even on his days off, all he talks about is work.
My little brother does nothing but play games instead of doing his homework.
After a verb in the て-form: てばかりいる.
Nothing but bread for lunch again?
だけ, しか or ばかり?
All three fit the same situation, and each says something different about it.
When we have hot pot, my brother eats only the meat.
Meat and nothing else. A fact.
When we have hot pot, my brother won't eat anything but the meat.
The same fact, turned around: there is nothing else he eats. It's what you say about a fussy eater.
When we have hot pot, my brother eats nothing but meat.
The meat, every time, and you think it's too much. He may eat other things as well.
Where it goes wrong
English says "I only drink coffee", with a positive verb, and learners carry that over to しか.
Not said: 朝は
(In the morning, I only drink coffee.)
It is コーヒーしか飲みません, or with だけ, コーヒーだけ飲みます.
With だけ, a negative verb is a real negative, so these two sentences say opposite things.
Only Ms. Tanaka came to the meeting.
Nobody but Tanaka came.
Only Ms. Tanaka didn't come to the meeting.
Everybody but Tanaka came.
のみ: on signs and in formal writing
Full pageのみN2
のみ means what だけ means, and only the setting differs. Out loud you hear it from staff, and otherwise people say だけ.
They only take cash here, apparently.
You, telling a friend.
きり: in a few set words
Full pageきり・
きり is "only" after a number, and you meet it mostly in a few set words: 一人きり (all alone), 二人きり (just the two of us), 一度きり (just the once). Outside words like these, people say だけ.
にすぎない and でしかない: merely
Full pageにすぎないN2でしかないN2ただの・
にすぎない and でしかない are the "only" of "it's only a rumor": that is all it is. にすぎない is matter-of-fact and mostly written. でしかない is blunter, and people say it out loud too.
That is nothing more than a rumor.
単なる, "mere", often comes with it.
I only passed on what the person in charge said.
After a verb: that is all someone did. でしかない follows a noun, never a verb.
That's nothing but an excuse.
In everyday conversation people say ただの, "just a", before a noun: ただのうわさだ, "it's just a rumor". After a verb they say だけ: 伝えただけだ, "I only passed it on". Before an amount it is たった, "a mere".
Only three people came to the party.
Other things "only" can mean
After a verb in the dictionary form: "the only thing to do is", "have no choice but to".
If no one else will take it on, I'll just have to do it myself.
English also says "only" for "still early", as in "it's only five o'clock". That is まだ, "still": まだ五時です.