Talk:only

The Latin word "unicus" is not a very accurate translation of the English word "only", though I suppose that it is the closest possible translation. Llewyll 21:45, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

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only

Rfd-redundant: Adjective: Singular; part of a relatively small number. "Singular" is redundant to "Alone in a category" and "the best". "Part of a relatively small number" is redundant to "Few". I am not even sure that "few" is a good sense of "only". DCDuring TALK 00:39, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

Doesn't even make sense to me, how can something be singular AND part of a very small number, unless the number is one. Make something comprehensible out of it, or delete. Mglovesfun (talk) 23:48, 3 October 2010 (UTC)

deleted -- Prince Kassad 20:19, 11 March 2011 (UTC)

Pronunciation

Is it just me, or is this word sometimes pronounced [ˈoɫn.li]? I can't imagine myself using the [oʊ] diphthong, i.e. pronouncing the first syllable like "own".Jchthys (talk) 22:02, 3 February 2014 (UTC)

I agree it is sometimes pronounced [ˈoɫnli] and sometimes even [ˈoɫni]. --WikiTiki89 22:04, 3 February 2014 (UTC)

@Jchthys, Wikitiki89: Any academic references? --Backinstadiums (talk) 11:37, 12 March 2019 (UTC)

Indian English

Used differently in Indian English, e.g. "where are you going?" "I'm here only" (I'm not going anywhere). For more, see [1]. Equinox ◑ 16:00, 8 March 2015 (UTC)

It's been discussed in the Etymology Sciptorium that this is a semantic loan from emphatic particles that exist in various Indian languages, such as ही (hī). I've meant to add something to the entry, but the truth is I don't totally understand its usage, in part because I don't speak any Indian languages proficiently. I think "here only" is supposed to mean "right here" but don't know. Could use attention from someone who speaks Indian English. פֿינצטערניש (talk) 12:07, 12 March 2019 (UTC)

RFV discussion: June–July 2019

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only

RFV adj sense 2:

1. Alone in a category.

   He is the only doctor for miles.

   The only people in the stadium were the fans: no players, coaches, or officials.

   That was the only time I went to Turkey.

2. Singularly superior; the best.

   He is the only trombonist to recruit.

   • (Can we date this quote?) William Shakespeare

     Motley's the only wear.

It seems to me that the "trombonist" example for sense 2 does not illustrate anything different from sense 1, i.e. that that person alone should be recruited. Yes, the statement as a whole may imply that that person is superior, but "only" does not itself mean this, or so it seems to me. I do not understand the Shakespeare quote. If sense 2 does exist I think we need a clearer example. Mihia (talk) 19:24, 1 June 2019 (UTC)

The sense is real.

MWOnline has, as first definition, "unquestionably the best : peerless

is convinced that his team is the only one"

“only”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC. had, as fourth definition, "single in degree of excellence; […] special"

Oxford has, as a subsense, "Alone deserving consideration.

‘it's simply the only place to be seen these days’"

AHD has, as second def, "Most suitable of all; superior or excellent

This is the only way to cook a good steak.

The AHD example appeals to me as not being readily subsumed under our first definition, ways to cook a good steak not being a natural category, though certainly construable as a category. DCDuring (talk) 20:45, 1 June 2019 (UTC)

Also, the older cites seem to support a definition not quite the same as the way we use only now. Peerless and special seem somewhat different to me. DCDuring (talk) 20:48, 1 June 2019 (UTC)

To me, the function of "only" in "This is the only way to cook a good steak" seems the same as that in "He is the only doctor for miles". Out of all the possible ways/doctors, only one satisfies the requirement. You could just as well say "This is the only way to mess up cooking a steak". Even in "This is the only way to cook a steak", or other examples such as "it's simply the only place to be seen these days", the sense of "superior" or "best" is in my opinion conveyed as a result of an implied statement of objective, rather than by the word "only" itself. Mihia (talk) 21:58, 1 June 2019 (UTC)

It did subsequently occur to me that "This is the only way to cook a good steak" can be interpreted in two ways. In the first interpretation, "good" is a explicit statement of the desired cooking objective. This is the way I naturally read it. In the second interpretation, "good" describes the type of steak before it is cooked. In this case there is an implied statement of cooking objective ("if you want to ...", "in order to ..." etc.). Mihia (talk) 22:40, 1 June 2019 (UTC)

I usually defer to professional lexicographers' assertion of a definition, though I may want to reword it; label it obsolete, archaic, or dated; or qualify it with a context label. I am also loathe to rely on interpretations that require additional context not in the usage example. It is usually easier to distinguish definitions when the collocations for the definitions are sharply different. Sadly, it is hard to produce sharply different sets of collocations for a word like only without a well-annotated corpus with KWIC display software.

IMO the only doctor for miles would usually mean that there was not another doctor for miles, though it could mean "the best doctor in the area". Simlarly, This is the only way to cook a good steak. probably means "no other way of cooking does justice to a good steak ("piece of meat")", though it could mean "there is no other way of cooking that leads to a good steak." The interpretation that there exists no other way (besides the one just mentioned) to cook a good steak., which would be definition 1, is quite implausible. DCDuring (talk) 02:07, 2 June 2019 (UTC)

Sorry, I'm afraid I disagree. I see two ways to interpret the "steak" sentence, both of which are definition 1. I do not agree that definition 2 applies. Mihia (talk) 10:28, 6 June 2019 (UTC)

RFV-passed Kiwima (talk) 03:15, 3 July 2019 (UTC)

only fair

What meaning of "only" applies to the sentences using fair, such as it's only fair that ... or ...as is only fair? I think some rhetorical figure comes into play --Backinstadiums (talk) 10:05, 10 August 2019 (UTC)

It is sense 2: "no more than; just". The intended sense is that something should be fair, and it's unreasonable not to meet that minimum requirement of fairness. Equinox ◑ 10:11, 10 August 2019 (UTC)

most regrettably

most regrettably (esp in the phrase only too true)
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers

--Backinstadiums (talk) 17:13, 8 December 2019 (UTC)

before the verb

There has long been a tendency in all varieties of speech and writing to place ONLY before the verb (She only sold the stock because she needed the money), and such placement is rarely confusing
https://www.wordreference.com/definition/only

--Backinstadiums (talk) 16:44, 17 February 2020 (UTC)

only too

only too is an idiom in various dictionaries https://www.wordreference.com/definition/only --Backinstadiums (talk) 16:57, 19 February 2020 (UTC)

Adjective: "few" instead of "one"

One of the only is illogical, as only implies singularity but the noun following it is plural: He is one of the only hard-working people left around here (vs. That's the only pen I have left.) --Backinstadiums (talk) 10:26, 3 August 2020 (UTC)

2. Most suitable of all; superior or excellent

Most suitable of all; superior or excellent: This is the only way to cook a good steak. --Backinstadiums (talk) 16:16, 10 March 2021 (UTC)

only for

only for redirects here, unlike its synonyms except for and but for meaning 'Were it not that' Only for him you would not be here. --Backinstadiums (talk) 19:50, 28 June 2021 (UTC)

not only

She not only presents the information in a lively fashion, but she also... Cf. She does not only... Backinstadiums (talk) 10:47, 31 October 2022 (UTC)