How to spell only

Only is spelled O-N-L-Y.

hear iton·ly/'oʊnli/adverbSounds

What it means: No more than one; single.

In a sentence: He has only one toy car.

Same family: alone, lonely, solely, just, merely. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: “Only” comes from Old English “ānlic” or “ǽnlic,” related to the word “one,” and originally meant “unique” or “single.” Over time, its meaning shifted so it is now mostly used as an adverb to limit or focus something, like in the phrase “only one.”

Try spelling it

You will hear the word and a sentence. Type it and press Enter. Then four more words from the same level, so you know where you stand.

Words like this

rose · shoes · those · chose · both · ocean

Everyone has words they always get wrong. Spelling.School finds yours, shows you exactly why you miss them, and uses spaced repetition until you spell them right every time. Five minutes a day. Try five words without signing up.