Word: Only

Pronunciation

/ˈəʊnli/

Definitions

• Adjective: Being the single one; not any other than the one specified. For example: “She is the only child in the family.”

• Adverb: To the exclusion of all others; alone; exclusively. It can also imply restriction, limitation, or exception. For example: “I only want to eat ice cream today.” or “He works only on Mondays.”

  Noun (rarely used): The single person or thing; the unique one. For example: “In this race, he is the only.”

Phrases

• “Only if” introduces a condition that must be met for something to happen. Example: “I’ll go to the party only if you’re going too.”
• “Only when” suggests a specific moment or circumstance under which something happens. Example: “He realizes his mistake only when it’s too late.”
• “The only one” implies uniqueness or being singular in number or kind. Example: “She’s the only one who knows the secret recipe.”

Example Sentences

• Adjective: “This book is the only copy left in the library.”
• Adverb: “I only need five minutes to finish my homework.”
• Noun (rarely used): “He was the only among the group who had actually visited Paris.”

Synonyms

• Sole
• Exclusive
• Alone
• Unique
• Unmatched (adjective)
• Merely
• Simply (adverb)

Note: As an adverb, ‘only’ can sometimes change the meaning of a sentence significantly depending on its placement within the sentence structure. This is known as ‘sentence adverbial use’. For instance, in “I only ate one cookie”, moving ‘only’ to different positions would alter the emphasis: “I ate only one cookie” vs “I ate one cookie only”.