How to say “merely” in Chinese
merely; only
“Merely” in Chinese is 只是, zhǐ shì: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
只是 is read zhǐ shì: 2 syllables. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.
How to write it
On top, 日 “sun”.
Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “只是”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 只是. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 我只是看看wǒzhǐshìkànkanI’m just looking.
- 我只是一个普通人wǒzhǐshìyígepǔtōngrénI'm just an ordinary person.
- 也许他只是太紧张了yěxǔtāzhǐshìtàijǐnzhāngleMaybe he was just too nervous.
- 别生气我只是开玩笑biéshēngqì,wǒzhǐshìkāiwánxiàoDon't be mad, I'm just joking.
- 我不是专业的只是业余爱好wǒbúshìzhuānyède,zhǐshìyèyúàihàoI'm not a professional — it's just a hobby.
- 这只是我的主观看法。zhèzhǐshìwǒdezhǔguānkànfǎThis is just my subjective opinion.
More words from the lesson “About, almost, definitely”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “merely” in Chinese?
“Merely” in Chinese is 只是, pinyin zhǐshì.
What does 只是 mean?
只是 (zhǐshì) means “merely; only”.
How do you write 只是?
只是 is 2 characters: 只 (zhī) — measure word for animals; 是 (shì) — be. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 只是?
只是 is read zhǐshì. Tones: zhǐ — third tone, shì — fourth tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“merely” in the lesson “About, almost, definitely”
This word is from the topic “Shopping and things” of HSK 3. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.
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