Talk:だけ

An explanation of the particle だけ

Meaning/Function: A particle which expresses a limit imposed upon something that is growing and expanding.

English equivalents: only; just; alone; merely; that’s all

Related expressions: しか; ばかり

Key sentences:

1. スミスさんだけ（が）来(き)た/来(き)ました。 ― sumisu-san dake (ga) kita/kimashita. ― Only Mr. Smith came.
2. 私(わたし)は日本(にほん)へ一度(いちど)だけ行(い)った/行(い)きました。 ― watashi wa nihon e ichido dake itta/ikimashita. ― I went to Japan only once.
3. 雪子(ゆきこ)さんとはデートしただけだ/です。 ― yukiko-san to wa dēto shita dake da/desu. ― I just dated Yukiko, that’s all.
4. この家(いえ)は大(おお)きいだけだ/です。 ― kono ie wa ōkī dake da/desu. ― This house is big, that’s all.
5. このお菓子(かし)は色(いろ)がきれいなだけだ/です。 ― kono okashi wa iro ga kirei na dake da/desu. ― This cake has pretty colours, that’s all.

Formation:

1. Noun だけ（が）/（を）
   先生(せんせい)だけ（が）/（を） ― sensei dake (ga)/(o) ― the teacher alone (subject)/(direct object).
2. Noun (だけ Particle / Particle だけ), where Particle means particles other than が, を, and は.
   先生(せんせい)（だけに/にだけ） ― sensei (dake ni/ni dake) ― only to the teacher / to the teacher only.
3. (Verb / i-adjective) informal だけ (だ / です)
   （話(はな)す/話(はな)した）だけ（だ/です） ― (hanasu / hanashita) dake (da / desu) ― someone talks/talked, that’s all.
   （高(たか)い/高(たか)かった）だけ（だ/です） ― (takai / takakatta) dake (da / desu) ― something is/was expensive, that’s all.
4. Na-adjective stem (な / だった) だけ (だ / です)
   （静(しず)かな/静(しず)かだった）だけ（だ/です） ― (shizukana / shizukadatta) dake (da / desu) ― something is/was quiet, that’s all.

Examples:

1. 佐藤(さとう)さんだけ（が）会議(かいぎ)に出(で)ました。 ― satō-san dake (ga) kaigi ni demashita. ― Only Mr. Satō attended the conference.
2. 小(ちい)さい和英辞典(わえいじてん)だけ（を）買(か)いました。 ― chīsai waeijiten dake (o) kaimashita. ― I bought only a small Japanese-English dictionary.
3. 僕(ぼく)にだけ/だけに話(はな)して下(くだ)さい。 ― boku ni dake / dake ni hanashite kudasai. ― Please tell it only to me / to me alone.
4. この車(くるま)はアルコールでだけ/だけで動(うご)きます。 ― kono kuruma wa arukōru de dake / dake de ugokimasu. ― This car runs only on alcohol (and on nothing else) / on alcohol alone (so it needs nothing else).
5. あの先生(せんせい)には一度(いちど)だけ会(あ)いました。 ― ano sensei ni wa ichido dake aimashita. ― I met that professor only once.
6. 朝(あさ)はコーヒーを一杯飲(いっぱいの)むだけです。 ― asa wa kōhī o ippai nomu dake desu. ― In the morning I just drink a cup of coffee, that’s all.
7. この本(ほん)は高(たか)いだけでおもしろくない。 ― kono hon wa takai dake de omoshirokunai. ― This book is just expensive and is not interesting.
8. テニスは好(す)きなだけで上手(じょうず)じゃない。 ― tenisu wa sukina dake de jōzuja nai. ― I just like tennis, and I’m not good at it.
9. それは学生(がくせい)だけのパーティーだった。 ― sore wa gakusei dake no pātī datta. ― It was a party for students only.
10. 出来(でき)るだけゆっくり話(はな)して下(くだ)さい。 ― dekiru dake yukkuri hanashite kudasai. ― Please speak as slowly as possible.

Notes:

1. When だけ modifies a preceding noun, as in Examples (a), (b), (c), and (d), the particle that is used with the noun can be positioned before or after だけ, except for the particles が, を and は, which can be optionally used only after だけ.
2. The optional positionings of the particles other than が, を and は create a subtle semantic difference. Distinctive emphasis is placed on the particle, yielding a meaning of exclusiveness in the case of Noun + Particle + だけ. No meaning of exclusiveness is implied in the case of Noun + だけ + Particle.
3. If だけ is used in ~ (Verb / i-adjective) informal だけ (だ / です) or ~ Na-adjective stem (な / だった) だけ (だ / です), as illustrated in Key Sentences (C), (D) and (E), だけ modifies the entire preceding part and means ‘~, that’s all.’

   Compare (1a) and (1b) below:
   (1) a. 魚(さかな)だけ（を）食(た)べた。 ― sakana dake (o) tabeta. ― I ate only fish.
   (1) b. 魚(さかな)を食(た)べただけだ。 ― sakana o tabeta dake da. ― I ate fish, that’s all.

   In (1a) だけ modifies only the preceding noun 魚 (‘fish’), while in (1b) だけ modifies the entire preceding part of the sentence 魚を食べた (‘I ate fish’).
4. Verb (Potential) + だけ as in Ex. (j) means ‘as much as one can ~’.
   (2) a. 食(た)べられるだけ食(た)べたい。 ― taberareru dake tabetai. ― I’d like to eat as much as I can (eat).
   (2) b. 踊(おど)れるだけ踊(おど)ろう。 ― odoreru dake odorō. ― Let’s dance as much as we can (dance).

Makino, Seiichi, and Michio Tsutsui. A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar. Tokyo, The Japan Times, Ltd., 1994, pp. 93-97.

Wise Bridges Fool Walls (talk) 18:47 6 September 2024 (UTC) Wise Bridges Fool Walls (talk) 22:49, 6 September 2024 (UTC)