How Do You Spell ONLY JUST?

Pronunciation: [ˈə͡ʊnli d͡ʒˈʌst] (IPA)

The spelling of the phrase "only just" is not always intuitive, but it can be broken down phonetically using IPA symbols. The first word, "only," is pronounced with the vowel sound /əʊ/ as in "stone" followed by the consonant sound /n/. The second word, "just," begins with the consonant sound /dʒ/ as in "jump" and ends with the vowel sound /ʌ/ as in "duh." Together, the phrase is pronounced /ˈəʊnli ˈdʒʌst/. Despite its tricky spelling, "only just" is a common expression meaning "barely" or "just enough."

ONLY JUST Meaning and Definition

1. Only just is often used as an adverb phrase to indicate that an action or state of being has barely occurred or just recently happened. It is used to imply that something has been narrowly achieved, just met a requirement, or happened at the last minute.

   Only just can also convey the sense of almost being late or delayed, as if something narrowly happened within a short timeframe. This phrase suggests that there was very little time or margin left before a certain outcome or deadline was reached.

   Furthermore, only just can convey the idea of something being barely sufficient or barely meeting a standard. It implies that something has merely fulfilled the minimum requirement, without any extra or surplus.

   For example, if someone says "I only just made it to the meeting," they are indicating that they barely arrived in time or almost did not arrive at all. It conveys a sense of urgency and potential tightness in the situation. Another example could be "I only just passed my exam," suggesting that the person barely achieved the necessary score to succeed. In such cases, "only just" highlights the narrowness or nearness of the outcome, emphasizing how it just barely happened.

Common Misspellings for ONLY JUST

• inly just
• knly just
• lnly just
• pnly just
• 0nly just
• 9nly just
• obly just
• omly just
• ojly just
• ohly just
• onky just
• onpy just
• onoy just
• onlt just
• onlg just
• onlh just
• onlu just
• onl7 just
• onl6 just
• only hust

Etymology of ONLY JUST

The word "only" derives from the Old English word "ǣnlīċ" meaning "alone", which is a combination of "ǣn" (meaning "one") and "līċ" (meaning "body" or "like"). Over time, the word "ǣnlīċ" evolved into "only" and retained the sense of singularity or exclusivity.

The word "just" comes from the Old French word "juste", which originated from the Latin word "justus", meaning "upright", "righteous", or "lawful". This Latin term shares its roots with another Latin word "jus" (meaning "law" or "right"), which further links to the concept of impartiality and fairness. Through the evolution of language, "just" has taken on various meanings, including "merely" or "only".

Idioms with the word ONLY JUST

• only just The idiom "only just" is used to describe something that has recently happened or barely occurred, often implying that it was close to not happening at all.