～だけ (only, just)

• Reading: だけ
• Romaji: dake
• Formation: Noun + だけ / Verb (plain form) + だけ / い-Adj + だけ / な-Adj + な + だけ

Meaning

A particle that expresses a limit imposed upon something. It indicates that the quantity, extent, or scope of something is restricted to what is marked by だけ.

だけ restricts the scope of the preceding element, meaning 'only' or 'just.' It can follow nouns, verbs in plain form, adjectives, and counters. Unlike しか (which requires a negative verb), だけ can be used with both affirmative and negative predicates. When combined with particles like が or を, the particle may be dropped (水だけ飲む) or retained (水だけを飲む), with retention sounding slightly more emphatic. だけ can also express extent in the pattern Verb-できるだけ meaning 'as much as possible.' Be careful not to confuse だけ with ばかり, which implies excess or exclusivity with a different nuance.

Examples

1. 今日は水だけ飲みました。 I drank only water today.
2. 週末だけ仕事を休みます。 I take off work only on weekends.
3. 彼女だけがその答えを知っている。 Only she knows that answer.

Usage Guide

Context: spoken, written, everyday

Tone: descriptive

Do Say

• 必要なものだけ買いましょう。
• 日本語だけで話してみてください。
• 見るだけなら無料です。
• できるだけ早く来てください。

Don't Say

• 日本語だけ話しません。(だけ with a negative verb means 'only doesn't do' — use しか～ない for 'speaks nothing but') → 日本語しか話しません。
• 三つだけしかない。(だけ and しか cannot be combined — choose one or the other) → 三つしかない。
• 静かだけの部屋がいい。(な-adjective before だけ needs な, not の) → 静かなだけの部屋がいい。

Origin & History

Derived from the noun 丈 (take/dake), originally meaning 'height' or 'measure,' which evolved to express the concept of a limited extent or degree in classical Japanese.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal