2020-11-20
ศัพท์ น่าสับสน ชุด O – Only
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ความหมาย อาจผันแปร ขึ้นอยู่กับ ตำแหน่ง/หน้าที่ ในประโยค
Dictionary.com
ออกเสียง only = ‘OHN-lee’
Dictionary.com
USAGE NOTE FOR ONLY
The placement of only as a modifier
is more a matter of style and clarity than of grammatical rule.
In a sentence like The doctor examined the children,
varying the placement of only
results in quite different meanings:
The doctor only examined the children
means that the doctor did nothing else.
And The doctor examined only the children
means that no one else was examined.
Especially in formal writing,
the placement of only immediately before
what it modifies is often observed:
She sold the stock only because she needed the money.
However, there has long been a tendency in all varieties
of speech and writing to place only beforethe verb
(She only sold the stock because she needed the money),
and such placement is rarely confusing.
COLLINS ENGLISH DICTIONARY
USAGE FOR ONLY
In informal English, only is often used as a sentence connector:
I would have phoned you, only I didn't know your number.
This use should be avoided in formal writing:
I would have phoned you if I'd known your number.
In formal speech and writing, only is placed directly before the word
or words that it modifies:
she could interview only three applicants in the morning.
In all but the most formal contexts, however,
it is generally regarded as acceptable to put only before the verb:
she could only interview three applicants in the morning.
Care must be taken not to create ambiguity,
esp in written English, in which intonation will not,
as it does in speech, help to show
to which item in the sentence only applies.
A sentence such as she only drinks tea in the afternoon
is capable of two interpretations and istherefore
better rephrased either as she drinks only tea in the afternoon
(i.e. no other drink)
or she drinks tea only in the afternoon (i.e. at no other time)
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Placement of Only in a Sentence: Usage Guide
Adverb
The placement of only in a sentence
has been a source of studious commentary since the 18th century,
most of it intended to prove by force of argument
that prevailing standard usage is wrong.
After 200 years of preachment the followingobservations may be made: the position of only in standardspoken English is not fixed,
since ambiguity is avoided through sentence stress;
in casual prose that keeps close to the rhythms of speech
only is often placed where it would bein speech;
and in edited and more formal prose only
tends to be placed immediately before the word or words it modifies.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language,
Usage Note:
The adverb only is notorious for itsability to change
the meaning of a sentence depending on its placement.
Consider the difference in meaning in thefollowing examples:
Dictators respect only force; they are not moved by words.
Dictators only respect force; they do not worship it.
She picked up the phone only when he entered, not before.
She only picked up the phone when he entered; she didn't dial the number.
The surest way to prevent readers frommisinterpreting only
is to place it next to the word or words itmodifies.
Many usage sticklers view this policy as arule
that should always be followed,
but in many cases it sounds more natural for only
to come earlier in the sentence,
and if the preceding context is sufficiently clear,
there is scant likelihood of beingmisunderstood.
Thus, the rule requires
We can come to an agreement only if everyone is willing to compromise.
But it may sound more natural, with slightly different emphasis
and with no risk of misunderstanding,
to say We can only come to an agreement if everyone is willing to compromise.
The expression one of the only issometimes called out for being illogical, as only impliessingularity but the noun following it is plural in this construction. The Usage Panel is mixed on the subject. In our 2008 survey, 48 percent accepted the sentence
He is one of the only hard-working people left around here.
Many panelists may object to the use of the word as an adjective
to mean "few" instead of"one" (as in That's the only pen I have left).
The expression the only two found more favor,
despite its apparent illogic, with 62 percent accepting
She is one of the only two writers I can relate to.
This is probably because of similarity to the adverbial use of only with two, which is well established and familiar
(There are only two seats left). See Usage Note at not.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary,
usage:
Some usage guides maintain that
misunderstanding will arise if the modifier only is notplaced immediately before what it modifies.
Inserting only inthe sentence
The doctor examined the children might produce ambiguity in written English.
The doctor examined only the children would signify that no one else was examined,
whereas The doctor only examined the children could indicate
either that the doctor did nothing else
or that no one else was examined.
In all varieties of speech and writing
there has long been a tendency to place only beforethe verb in a sentence regardless of what it modifies.
In spoken English the intended meaning may beconveyed
by stressing the construction to which only applies.
Collins COBUILD English Usage
Only can be an adjective or an adverb.
1. used as an adjective
You use only in front of a noun or one to say that something is true about one person, thing, or group and not true about anyone or anything else.
In front of only you put the ora possessive.
Grace was the only survivor.
I was the only one listening.
'Have you a spare one?' – 'No, it's my only copy unfortunately.'
When only has this meaning, you must use a noun or one after it.
You cannot say, for example, 'He was the only to escape'.
If you don't want to use a more specific noun,
you can use person or thing.
You can say, for example, 'He was the only person to escape'.
He was the only person allowed to issue documents of that sort.
It was the only thing they could do.
If you use another adjective or a number, you put only in front of it.
The only English city he enjoyed working in was Manchester.
So I probably have the only three copies of the album in existence.
'Only' is not normally used after an.
There is one common exception:
if you say that someone is an only child, you mean that they have no brothers or sisters.
As an only child she is accustomed to adult company.
2. used as an adverb
Only is used as an adverb to say that something is the one thing that is done, that happens, or that is relevant in a particular situation, in contrast to all the other things that are not done, do not happen, or are not relevant.
- If only applies to the subject of a clause, you put it in front of the subject.
Only his close friends knew how much he worried about his daughters.
We believe that only a completely different approach will be effective.
- If the verb is be, you put only after it.
There is only one train that goes from Denmark to Sweden by night.
- If the verb is not 'be' and only does not apply to the subject, you usually put it in front of the verb or after the first auxiliary verb, regardless of what it applies to. For example, instead of saying 'I see my brother only at weekends', you usually say 'I only see my brother at weekends'.
Drivers only find serious traffic jams in the city centre.
We could only choose two of them.
New technology will only be introduced by agreement with the unions.
3. used for emphasis
However, if you want to be quite clear or emphatic,
you put only immediately in front of the word, word phrase, or clause it applies to.
He played only classical music.
You may borrow only one item at a time.
We film only when something interesting is found.
For extra emphasis, you can put only afterthe word or word phrase that it applies to.
We insisted on being interviewed by women journalists only.
This strategy was used once only.
In writing and formal speech, you can put only atthe beginning of a sentence, followed by the word, phrase, or clause it applies to.
After this word, phrase, or clause, you put an auxiliary verb or be followed by the subject ofthe main clause.
Only here was it safe to prepare and handle hot drinks.
Only then did Ginny realize that she still hadn't phoned her mother.
Another way of emphasizing is to start with 'It is only...' or 'It was only...' and the word or words that you want to emphasize. You put the rest of the sentence ina that-clause.
It was only much later that I realized what had happened.
It was only when he started to take photographs that he was stopped.
4. 'not only'
You use not only with but or but also as a way of linking words or word groups.
See not only
Common Errors In English Usage Dictionary
only
Writers often inadvertently create confusion byplacing “only”
incorrectly in a sentence.
It should go immediately before the word or phrase it modifies.
“I lost my only shirt” means that I had but one to begin with.
“I lost only my shirt” means I didn’t lose anything else.
“Only I lost my shirt” means that I was the only person in my group to lose a shirt.
Strictly speaking, “I only lost my shirt” should mean I didn’t destroy it or have it stolen—I just lost it;
but in common speech this is usually understood
as being identical with “I lost only my shirt.”
Scrutinize your uses of “only” to make sure you are not creating unwanted ambiguities.
Dictionary of Problem Words and Expression
Only
A frequent error in speech, a mistake made by nearly everyone,
is misplacing a modifier such as only.
When one says “Hank only wanted to borrow $5,”
he has said that the only thing Hank wanted was to borrow $5.
What he probably had in mind was “Hank wanted to borrow only $5.”
Words like only, scarcely, hardly, not, even, today, and tomorrow
are associated with the word or phrase immediately preceding or following.
Modifiers should be placed in sentences
so that they convey precisely the meaning intended.
Not only requires as much care inplacement as does only.
“He not only saw Jack at the game but Jill, too” should read
“He saw not only Jack at the game but Jill, too.”
