Only

From Creolista!
Revision as of 13:45, 13 February 2013 by WikiSysop (talk | contribs) (Translation)
Jump to: navigation, search

Translation

French. uniquement, seulement, ne... que...

Interaction with the subordinating conjunction if:

only if = uniqueement si, if only = si seulement
"ne... que"
It's only for a couple hours. / Ce n'est que pour quelques heures.
It will only be for a couple hours. / Ce ne sera que pour quelques heures.
She was only gone a few minutes. / Elle n'est partie que quelques minutes.

Etymology

only
O.E. ænlic, anlic "only, unique, solitary," lit. "one-like," from an "one" (see one) + -lic "-like" (see -ly (1)). Use as an adverb and conjunction developed in Middle English. Distinction of only and alone (now usually in reference to emotional states) is unusual; in many languages the same word serves for both. German also has a distinction in allein/einzig. Phrase only-begotten (mid-15c.) is biblical, translating L. unigenitus, Gk. monogenes. The Old English form was ancenned.