only

1. 1.

   and nothing more

   “I was merely asking”

   “it is simply a matter of time”

   “just a scratch”

   “he was only a child”

   “hopes that last but a moment”

   Synonymsmerelysimplyjustbut
2. 2.

   without any others being included or involved

   “was entirely to blame”

   “a school devoted entirely to the needs of problem children”

   “he works for Mr. Smith exclusively”

   “did it solely for money”

   “the burden of proof rests on the prosecution alone”

   “a privilege granted only to him”

   Synonymsentirelyexclusivelysolelyalone
3. 3.

   with nevertheless the final result

   “He arrived only to find his wife dead”

   “We won only to lose again in the next round”
4. 4.

   in the final outcome

   “These news will only make you more upset”
5. 5.

   except that

   “It was the same story; only this time she came out better”
6. 6.

   never except when

   “call me only if your cold gets worse”

   Synonymsonly ifonly when
7. 7.

   as recently as

   “I spoke to him only an hour ago”

1. 1.

   being the only one; single and isolated from others

   “the lone doctor in the entire county”

   “a lonesome pine”

   “an only child”

   “the sole heir”

   “the sole example”

   “a solitary instance of cowardice”

   “a solitary speck in the sky”

   Synonymslonelonesomesolesolitary

   Similarsingle
2. 2.

   exclusive of anyone or anything else

   “she alone believed him”

   “cannot live by bread alone”

   “I'll have this car and this car only”

   Synonymsalone

   Similarexclusive

Questions about only

What does only mean?

only means "and nothing more". That is the primary sense; the word has 9 in total, listed in full on this page.

How many syllables are in only?

only has 2 syllables: on-ly. The stress falls on "on". In IPA it is /ˈoʊnli/.

What is another word for only?

Close synonyms include merely, simply, just, but, entirely. Each sense on this page lists its own synonyms, because a word with several meanings rarely has one substitute that works for all of them.

Is only a common word?

only is banded "Core" — among the few thousand words that carry most english. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.