Speaker 1: Have you ever been writing something, or maybe even talking
to someone and you find yourself stuck on a couple
of super common words because you're not sure which one
is actually the right one to use. I think that
happens to us language learners from time to time. Let's
discuss Welcome to another Happy English podcast, coming to you
from New York City, and here's your English teacher, Michael.
All right, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's Michael
here from Happy English and I help people speak English better.
This is Happy English Podcast, Episode seven sixty four. Just
and only. Well, today we're going to take a deep
dive into one set of those words, just and only.
But before I get into all the details, let's start
with the basics at their most basic level. Just and
only can both mean no more than or merely. Like
imagine you're buying something online and the shipping is super cheap.
You might say it costs just five dollars to ship,
or it only costs five dollars to ship both just
and only work perfectly in that context. Or you're in
the office and your coworker tells you that you only
have one more day to finish the big project you're
working on. And you think, wow, just one more day.
We may need to work overtime tonight. In situations like this,
justin only are used with the same meaning, which is
no more than. For example, I can say I just
need twenty minutes more to finish this report, or I
only need twenty minutes more to finish this report. And
speaking of similarities, let me mention about where these words
basically go in a sentence. We usually put just and
only before the verb like I just finished lunch, or
she just told me what happened, or we only have
an hour before our flight. But when it comes to
the B verb, justin only come after it, like I'm
just so hungry this morning, or I'm only gonna eat
toast or Jack is just leaving the office. Now, what
about the meaning and usage that That's where the differences
come into play. We can use just and not only
to mean a moment ago or in the immediate past.
You can say things like I just woke up, so
I'm still sleepy. Here, we can't say I only woke up.
I just woke up, so I'm still sleepy. I just
heard about your accident, are you okay? I'm not hungry
because I just ate lunch. We also use just to
mean exactly, like when I wake up in the morning,
a cup of coffee is just what I need. Kelly's
daughter is just as tall as she is now. I
think I'm gonna buy that laptop. It's just what I
need for editing podcasts. Another way that we use is
that just can add emphasis to what you're saying. This
way just can be a good substitute for really, like
I just love my job. The pizza in this restaurant
is just the best I've ever had. And just can
also be used to mean barely or hardly. There's just
enough milk for one bowl of cereal. Jack took on
a second job because he just earns enough money to
pay his bills with his day job. And this is
where only comes in. Only has the meaning of nobody
or nothing more than that. Only the bank manager has
the keys to the vault. Nobody more than the manager.
Only the manager. Only gives us a lie, emitting sense
that there is no more than something. When they were
lost on the island, they had only berries to eat. Yeah,
nothing more than berries. When I went to take the exam,
the professor said I needed a pen, but I only
had a few pencils because I dropped my only pen
when I got off the subway. It was my only pen.
Nothing more. Well, it seems like we just came to
the closing part of this English lesson. I only have
one more idea for you today, and that is keep
in mind. The best way to remember this kind of
vocabulary is to take that vocabulary, write it in a
sentence that's true for you or true in your world,
and then memorize your sentences. Hey, did you know that
you can get the chance to practice this kind of
English with me directly? You can get more practice using
your English when you join my podcast Learner's study group.
There you can make new friends, join us for live
group lessons every week where we practice these podcast lessons together.
Plus you get access to the pdf, transcript and audio
download for every Happy English podcast in the past and
in the future. And on top of that, each episode
has exercises where you can practice this English point with
speaking and writing checked by me. To learn more, just
visit Myhappy English dot com and choose podcast lesson seven
sixty four. Remember, learning another language is not easy, but
it's not impossible, and I'm here to help you. On
your journey.
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