しか

particle

only; nothing but (with negative)

1. only; nothing but

A particle used with negative verbs to express 'only' or 'nothing but.' The verb following しか must be in negative form.

I only drink water.

I rarely see (them) / I only see (them) on rare occasions.

He can only speak Japanese.

しか is a restrictive particle meaning "only" that is always followed by a negative predicate.

X しか + negative = only X: 一人(ひとり)しか来(こ)なかった (only one person came)
これしかない (this is all there is)
dictionary form + しかない = have no choice but to: 待(ま)つしかない (all we can do is wait)

しか replaces が and を (水(みず)しか飲(の)まない, not 水(みず)をしか), but follows other particles: 日曜日(にちようび)にしか会(あ)えない (can only meet on Sundays).
The predicate is negative even though the English is positive: "I only have 100 yen" is 百円(ひゃくえん)しかない.

だけ: neutral "only", used with positive or negative predicates. しか stresses that the amount falls short of what was wanted or expected.
一人(ひとり)だけ来(き)た: Only one person came. (neutral)
一人(ひとり)しか来(こ)なかった: Only one person came. (fewer than hoped)

Related Words

general

Added 2026.2.4 19:52 · Revised 2026.10.1 13:22

09500/09959_shika