Chinese word

只

Pronunciation

Pinyinzhǐ

Meaning

  • adverbonly

Example

我只想休息。wǒ zhǐ xiǎng xiū xī

I only want to rest.

Illustration for 只 (only)

More examples

他生病了，只能在家休息。tā shēng bìng le zhǐ néng zài jiā xiū xī

He is sick, so he can only rest at home.

Core concept

A small boundary closes around one chosen part and keeps everything beyond it outside the statement.

Common phrases

  • 只好zhí hǎo

    have no choice but to

  • 只能zhǐ néng

    can only

  • 只会zhǐ huì

    will only

Similar words

才cái: Marks an amount or extent as smaller than expected.
只有zhí yǒu: Shows that a result or state holds only under a certain condition or in a certain situation.
只是zhǐ shì: Presents something as simply the stated matter, without adding anything more.

Definition in Chinese

用于限定数量、范围或情况，表示仅有或仅发生于某一对象，语气较弱，多见于口语，常位于谓语前。yòng yú xiàn dìng shù liàng fàn wéi huò qíng kuàng biǎo shì jǐn yǒu huò jǐn fā shēng yú mǒu yí duì xiàng yǔ qì jiào ruò duō jiàn yú kóu yǔ cháng wèi yú wèi yǔ qián

Word origin

只 (zhǐ, "only") is an old Chinese word for limiting a statement; simplified Chinese also uses its written form for traditional 隻 (zhī, "classifier for animals").

Usage tips

  • English speakers often use "just" for several meanings, but this word commonly narrows the action or situation rather than marking time or informality.

Other meanings

  • merelyadverb
  • simplyadverb

Opposites

  • 不只bù zhǐnot onlyadverb

Related words

Word lists with this word