only

• onely (obsolete)
• onlie (obsolete)

From Middle English oonly, onli, onlych, onelich, anely, from Old English ānlīċ, ǣnlīċ (“like; similar; equal”), from Proto-Germanic *ainalīkaz, equivalent to one +‎ -ly. Cognate with obsolete Dutch eenlijk, German ähnlich (“similar”), Old Norse álíkr, Swedish enlig (“unified”).

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈəʊn.li/
• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈəʊn.lɪ/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈoʊn.li/

• Audio (US)

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• Audio

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• Hyphenation: on‧ly

only (not comparable)

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.

   • 2013 July 26, Nick Miroff, “Mexico gets a taste for eating insects […]”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 7, page 32:

     The San Juan market is Mexico City's most famous deli of exotic meats, where an adventurous shopper can hunt down hard-to-find critters such as ostrich, wild boar and crocodile. Only the city zoo offers greater species diversity.

2. (Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) Singularly superior; the best.

   He is the only trombonist to recruit.

   • (Can we date this quote?) William Shakespeare

     Motley's the only wear.

3. Without sibling; without a sibling of the same gender.

   He is their only son, in fact, an only child.

   • 1949, Frank B. Gilbreth, Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey, Cheaper by the Dozen, dedication:

     To DAD ¶ who only reared twelve children ¶ and ¶ To MOTHER ¶ who reared twelve only children

4. (obsolete) Mere.
   • 1603, John Florio, transl.; Michel de Montaigne, chapter 40, in The Essayes, […], book I, printed at London: By Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], OCLC 946730821:

     I know some who wittingly have drawne both profit and preferment from cuckoldrie, the only name whereof is so yrksome and bail-ful to so many men.

• (alone in a category): sole, lone; see also Thesaurus:sole
• (singularly superior): peerless, unequaled, nonpareil

only (not comparable)

1. Without others or anything further; exclusively.
   • 2013 June 7, Ed Pilkington, “‘Killer robots’ should be banned in advance, UN told”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 26, page 6:

     In his submission to the UN, [Christof] Heyns points to the experience of drones. Unmanned aerial vehicles were intended initially only for surveillance, and their use for offensive purposes was prohibited, yet once strategists realised their perceived advantages as a means of carrying out targeted killings, all objections were swept out of the way.

   My heart is hers, and hers only.

   The cat sat only on the mat. It kept off the sofa.

2. No more than; just.
   • 1949, Frank B. Gilbreth, Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey, Cheaper by the Dozen, dedication:

     To DAD

     who only reared twelve children

     and

     To MOTHER

     who reared twelve only children

   • 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 20, in The China Governess‎:

     ‘No. I only opened the door a foot and put my head in. The street lamps shine into that room. I could see him. He was all right. Sleeping like a great grampus. Poor, poor chap.’

   • 2013 June 22, “Engineers of a different kind”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, page 70:

     Private-equity nabobs bristle at being dubbed mere financiers. Piling debt onto companies’ balance-sheets is only a small part of what leveraged buy-outs are about, they insist. Improving the workings of the businesses they take over is just as core to their calling, if not more so. Much of their pleading is public-relations bluster.

   The cat only sat on the mat. It didn't scratch it.

   If there were only one more ticket!

3. As recently as.
   • 2013 August 3, “Yesterday’s fuel”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847:

     The dawn of the oil age was fairly recent. Although the stuff was used to waterproof boats in the Middle East 6,000 years ago, extracting it in earnest began only in 1859 after an oil strike in Pennsylvania. The first barrels of crude fetched $18 (around $450 at today’s prices).

   He left only moments ago.

4. Used to express surprise or consternation at an action.

   She's only gone and run off with the milkman!

5. (obsolete) Above all others; particularly.
   • Marston

     his most only elected mistress

• (without others): See also Thesaurus:solely
• (no more than): See also Thesaurus:merely
• (as recently as):
• (above all others):

• if and only if
• only if
• if only

only

1. Under the condition that; but.
2. But; except.

   I would enjoy running, only I have this broken leg.

   • 1664 April 22, The Diary of Samuel Pepys:

     […] and pleasant it was, only for the dust.

   • Exodus 8:28, KJV:

     And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away.

   • 1931, Dorothy L Sayers, The Five Red Herrings chapter 24:

     […] oot of a' six suspects there's not one that's been proved to ha' been nigh the place where the corpse was found, only Mr Graham.

• if only

only (plural onlys or onlies)

1. An only child.
   • 2013, Sybil L. Hart, Maria Legerstee, Handbook of Jealousy

     The consistent finding […] that infants who are onlies do not differ from those who have siblings despite their lesser history of exposure to differential treatment is perplexing.

• only at OneLook Dictionary Search

• Lyon, lyon, noyl, ynol