仅 (jǐn) — only; merely; barely
Definition
Formal/written 'only, merely' — stronger than the everyday 只 and near-synonym 仅仅. Mostly seen in prose and formal speech.
adverb
onlymerelybarely
Examples
- 仅。Wǒ jǐn yòng le yí gè xiǎo shí jiù wán chéng le rèn wu.I finished the task in only an hour.
- 仅。Tā jǐn kàn le wǒ yì yǎn jiù zǒu le.She just glanced at me and left.
- 仅，。Zhè jǐn shì gè kāi shǐ, nǐ hái yǒu hěn duō shì yào zuò.This is merely the beginning; you still have a lot to do.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.
This origin belongs to the traditional form 僅; 仅 is its simplified writing.
Sound part声符shēngfú
堇
堇jǐn僅jǐn
Same sound today
The traditional form 僅 pairs 人, a person, with 堇, which gives the sound; the simplified 仅 is a later shorthand.
Grammar
Appears in
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