| 只 | [ zhǐ ] only, merely, just, but |
| 只不過 | [ zhǐ bu guò ] only, merely, nothing but, no more than, it's just that ... |
| 只可意會，不可言傳 | [ zhǐ kě yì huì bù kě yán chuán ] can be understood, but not described (idiom, from Zhuangzi 莊子|庄子[Zhuang1 zi3]); mysterious and subtle |
| 只好 | [ zhǐ haǒ ] without any better option, to have to, to be forced to |
| 只得 | [ zhǐ dé ] to have no alternative but to, to be obliged to |
| 只怕 | [ zhǐ pà ] I'm afraid that..., perhaps, maybe, very likely |
| 只是 | [ zhǐ shì ] merely, simply, only, but |
| 只有 | [ zhǐ yoǔ ] only have ..., there is only ..., (used in combination with 才[cai2]) it is only if one ... (that one can ...) (Example: 只有通過治療才能痊愈|只有通过治疗才能痊愈[zhi3 you3 tong1 guo4 zhi4 liao2 cai2 neng2 quan2 yu4] "the only way to cure it is with therapy"), it is only ... (who ...) (Example: 只有男性才有此需要[zhi3 you3 nan2 xing4 cai2 you3 ci3 xu1 yao4] "only men would have such a requirement"), (used to indicate that one has no alternative) one can only (do a certain thing) (Example: 只有屈服[zhi3 you3 qu1 fu2] "the only thing you can do is give in") |
| 只欠東風 | [ zhǐ qiàn dōng fēng ] all we need is an east wind (idiom); lacking only one tiny crucial item |
| 只消 | [ zhǐ ] to only need, it only takes |
| 只爭旦夕 | [ zhǐ zhēng dàn xī ] see 只爭朝夕|只争朝夕[zhi3 zheng1 zhao1 xi1] |
| 只爭朝夕 | [ zhǐ zhēng zhaō xī ] to seize every minute (idiom), to make the best use of one's time |
| 只知其一，不知其二 | [ zhǐ zhī qí yī bù zhī qí èr ] to know the first, but not know the second (idiom); only partial information |
| 只管 | [ zhǐ guǎn ] solely engrossed in one thing, just (one thing, no need to worry about the rest), simply, by all means, please feel free, do not hesitate (to ask for sth) |
| 只能 | [ zhǐ néng ] can only, obliged to do sth, to have no other choice |
| 只要 | [ zhǐ yaò ] if only, so long as |
| 只要功夫深，鐵杵磨成針 | [ zhǐ yaò gōng fu shēn tiě chǔ mó chéng zhēn ] If you work at it hard enough, you can grind an iron bar into a needle., cf idiom 磨杵成針|磨杵成针, to grind an iron bar down to a fine needle (idiom); fig. to persevere in a difficult task, to study diligently |
| 只見 | [ zhǐ jiàn ] to see (the same thing) over and over again, to see, to one's surprise, (sth happen suddenly) |
| 只見樹木不見森林 | [ zhǐ jiàn shù mù bù jiàn sēn lín ] unable to see the wood for the trees, fig. only able to see isolated details, and not the bigger picture |
| 只言片語 | [ zhǐ yán piàn yǔ ] just a word or two (idiom); a few isolated phrases |
| 只許州官放火，不許百姓點燈 | [ zhǐ xǔ zhoū guān fàng huǒ bù xǔ baǐ xìng diǎn dēng ] only the official is allowed to light the fire, Gods may do what cattle may not, quod licet Iovi, non licet bovi |
| 只說不做 | [ zhǐ shuō bù zuò ] to be all talk and no action |
| 只讀 | [ zhǐ dú ] read-only (computing) |
| 只限於 | [ zhǐ xiàn yú ] to be limited to |
| 只顧 | [ zhǐ gù ] solely preoccupied (with one thing), engrossed, focusing (on sth), to look after only one aspect |
| ⇒ 不只 | [ bù zhǐ ] not only, not merely |
| ⇒ 不怕不識貨，只怕貨比貨 | [ bù pà bù shí huò zhǐ pà huò bǐ huò ] lit. don't worry about not knowing goods, but about comparing them (proverb), fig. goods' (or person's) true value can only be determined through comparison |
| ⇒ 不怕官，只怕管 | [ bù pà guān zhǐ pà guǎn ] lit. it is not an official to be feared, but a person in direct control over sb (proverb), fig. to be obliged to comply with people in authority |
| ⇒ 世上無難事，只怕有心人 | [ shì shàng wú nán shì zhǐ pà yoǔ xīn rén ] see 天下無難事，只怕有心人|天下无难事，只怕有心人[tian1 xia4 wu2 nan2 shi4 , zhi3 pa4 you3 xin1 ren2] |
| ⇒ 可擦寫可編程只讀存儲器 | [ kě cā xiě kě biān chéng zhī dú cún chǔ qì ] EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory) |
| ⇒ 天下無難事，只怕有心人 | [ tiān xià wú nán shì zhǐ pà yoǔ xīn rén ] there is nothing the determined person can't accomplish (idiom), persistence will overcome |
| ⇒ 萬事俱備，只欠東風 | [ wàn shì jù beì zhǐ qiàn dōng fēng ] lit. everything is ready, all we need is an east wind (idiom), fig. lacking only one tiny crucial item |
| ⇒ 萬事皆備，只欠東風 | [ wàn shì jiē beì zhǐ qiàn dōng fēng ] everything is ready, all we need is an east wind (idiom), lacking only one tiny crucial item, also written 萬事俱備，只欠東風|万事俱备，只欠东风 |
