How to Use Only Correctly

Having trouble viewing this message? [Click here to view it online.]( To unsubscribe or change contact details, scroll to the bottom and follow the link. [GrammarBook.com]( Your #1 Source for Grammar and Punctuation How to Use Only Correctly Any language has its accepted daily misuses, even as they miff the grammatical purist. In English, we might often deal in statements with [solecisms]( such as: Please inform Sheila and I about the tickets. I must of left my backpack on the bus. Every dog has it's day. We're still in awe of the enormity of the new stadium. Another prevailing lapse of precision involves the word only: I only earn fifty dollars for making these pens. James only dines out at his favorite restaurant. The theft of the reported $500,000 cache only netted a safe full of IOUs. While we may be able to interpret the intended meaning from such statements, they could serve us better by not making us mentally revise the proper placement of only ourselves. Meaning and Placement of the Word Only The word only is a modifier that frequently functions as an adverb ("without others or anything further; just; exclusively; no more than") or an adjective ("being the single one or the relatively few of the kind"): 1. Only yesterday they said the Dow Jones was going to increase by 11%. (adverb) 2. Joaquin is the only son of Eli and Sarah. (adjective) As written, these statements tell us: 1. Just yesterday, the Dow Jones was expected to increase by 11%. 2. Eli and Sarah have one son, Joaquin. Only can have an emphatic effect on a sentence's targeted meaning, which is why proper placement becomes important. Let's relocate only in one of our example sentences: Joaquin is only the son of Eli and Sarah. Only is now an adverb modifying is instead of an adjective modifying son. This transforms what is being conveyed: We have the same collection of words, but their order now has a context in which something about Joaquin is being limited or minimized. To further illustrate the impact of the placement of only, let's insert the word in each of its possible positions in the sentence "I saw him in the park today": 1. Only I saw him in the park today. 2. I only saw him in the park today. 3. I saw only him in the park today. 4. I saw him only in the park today. 5. I saw him in only the park today. 6. I saw him in the only park today. 7. I saw him in the park only today. 8. I saw him in the park today only. The Correct Placement of Only As we've alluded to, sometimes in language—especially when we're speaking—we often use, understand, and forgive imperfect grammar. In some cases, such as when we're establishing comfortable conversation, using perfect grammar might even make us and others feel awkward. Consider the following sentence: This can only be viewed as a revolution against frozen TV dinners. Many of us will understand this sentence if spoken to us. However, proper grammar would place "only" before "as": This can be viewed only as a revolution against frozen TV dinners. This is an instance where idiom may often triumph over purism that runs the risk of sounding pedantic in a social setting. In formal writing, however, we should always be aiming for accuracy. We will achieve that with "only" by keeping the modifier as close to the modified element as possible. She ate only potatoes for dinner. (She ate nothing else.) Bryce will participate only if they sign a waiver. (He will not participate unless the waiver is signed.) The mayor only signs blank checks. (Likely a poke at the mayor: He or she does nothing else but recklessly spend, in someone's opinion.) I am in love only with her. (I love no other person.) As you may have noticed—and may now continue to notice—the most common misplacement of only tends to be before the verb: I only earn fifty dollars for making these pens. James only dines out at his favorite restaurant. The theft of the reported $500,000 cache only netted a safe full of IOUs. The grammatical issue is that when only modifies the verb, it instantly restricts the subject's action: I do nothing else but earn fifty dollars making pens; James does nothing but dine at one restaurant; nothing resulted from the theft but the discovery of IOUs. In many cases—except, for example, our jab at the mayor's spending habits—we do not mean to isolate and restrict the action. Rather, we mean to limit another aspect of the sentence. I earn only fifty dollars for making these pens. James dines out only at his favorite restaurant. The theft of the reported $500,000 cache netted only a safe full of IOUs. Placing only where it belongs for precision can always be justified in our daily formal writing. As it becomes increasingly aware of exception and subtlety, the socially tuned American ear can also recognize when to uphold the principles for targeted meaning and when to bend them, as we might during a weekend backyard barbecue. Related Topics [The Only Truth]( [Misplaced Modifiers: What They Are and How to Fix Them]( [What Are Dangling Modifiers?]( [View and comment on this article on our website.]( [Click here to watch our video on Clauses and Phrases]( Pop Quiz Determine if the word only is properly placed in the following sentences. If it is, leave the sentence be; if it isn't, move it to the correct position. 1. Jessica only is twenty-five years old. 2. Raphael is only my son. 3. The scientists will continue their research only if the new budget is approved. 4. The cat only eats one brand of cat food. 5. The Blue Buzzards only scored three runs in the entire series. The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation by Lester Kaufman and Jane Straus The Authority on English Grammar! Twelfth Edition Now Available An indispensable tool for busy professionals, teachers, students, homeschool families, editors, writers, and proofreaders. Available in print AND as an e-Book! Over 2,000 copies are purchased every month! To order the book, simply click the link to order the book from the [GrammarBook.com]( website. [Order Your Copy Today!]( Get Even More Useful Grammar Tips In addition to our weekly newsletter, we post new entries about American English grammar. The following is our most recent article. Bookmark our [GrammarBook blog]( and be sure to check it often. [Is It Mother's Day, Mothers' Day, or Mothers Day?]( Free BONUS Quiz for You! {NAME}, because you are a subscriber to the newsletter, you get access to one of the Subscribers-Only Quizzes. Click here to take an [Affect vs. Effect Quiz]( and get your scores and explanations instantly! We will be adding many more quizzes this year to our already substantial list of them. If you have suggestions for topics we have not yet covered, please send us a message at help@grammarbook.com. Hundreds of Additional Quizzes at Your Fingertips Subscribe now to receive hundreds of additional English usage quizzes not found anywhere else! Teachers and Employers Save hours of valuable time! You may assign quizzes to your students and employees and have their scores tallied, organized, and reported to you! Let [GrammarBook.com]( take the hassle out of teaching English! "Fun to test my skills." "The explanations really help ... thanks!" "I can select the quizzes to assign to my students, and then the results are reported to me automatically!" [Find out more about our subscription packages]( If you think you have found an error in a quiz, please email us at help@grammarbook.com Wordplay # --------------------------------------------------------------- Pop Quiz Answers 1. Jessica only is twenty-five years old. Revise: Jessica is only twenty-five years old. 2. Raphael is only my son. Revise: Raphael is my only son. 3. The scientists will continue their research only if the new budget is approved. Leave as is 4. The cat only eats one brand of cat food. Revise: The cat eats only one brand of cat food. 5. The Blue Buzzards only scored three runs in the entire series. Revise: The Blue Buzzards scored only three runs in the entire series. English In A Snap: 68 One-Minute English Usage Videos FREE Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Share them with your colleagues (and boss), children, teachers, and friends as well! [Click here to watch](. Forward this e-newsletter to your friends and colleagues. If you received this FREE weekly e-newsletter from a friend, [click here to have it sent to you each week](. Look for more grammar tips or writing advice from [GrammarBook.com]( next week. Miss a recent newsletter? [Click here to view past editions](. GrammarBook.com, 165 Kirkland Circle, Oswego, IL 60543, United States You may [unsubscribe]( or [change your contact details]( at any time. [Powered by:](