〜しか〜ない
N4shika ... nai
only; nothing but
Formation
Noun + しか + Verb-nai
Chinese meanings
只有;仅仅
Chinese formation
名词+しか+否定形
Chinese usage
通过否定形式限定范围,表示只有某物或某人。
Chinese notes
比だけ更容易带有数量少或不足的语气。
Examples
- 財布に五百円しかない。I only have 500 yen in my wallet.钱包里只有五百日元。
- このことは、あなたにしか話していません。I haven't told anyone but you about this.这件事我只告诉了你。
- 朝はコーヒーしか飲みません。I only drink coffee in the morning.早上我只喝咖啡。
Notes
Always paired with a negative verb. Compared with だけ, it stresses that the amount is small or not enough.
#limitation#negation
Related N4 grammar
Use this entry in code
import { getGrammarById } from 'kotowa';
getGrammarById('shika-nai');
{
"id": "shika-nai",
"pattern": "〜しか〜ない",
"romaji": "shika ... nai",
"level": "N4",
"meaning": "only; nothing but",
"formation": "Noun + しか + Verb-nai",
"examples": [
{
"ja": "財布に五百円しかない。",
"furigana": "{財布|さいふ}に{五|ご}{百|ひゃく}{円|えん}しかない。",
"en": "I only have 500 yen in my wallet."
},
{
"ja": "このことは、あなたにしか話していません。",
"furigana": "このことは、あなたにしか{話|はな}していません。",
"en": "I haven't told anyone but you about this."
},
{
"ja": "朝はコーヒーしか飲みません。",
"furigana": "{朝|あさ}はコーヒーしか{飲|の}みません。",
"en": "I only drink coffee in the morning."
}
],
"tags": [
"limitation",
"negation"
],
"notes": "Always paired with a negative verb. Compared with だけ, it stresses that the amount is small or not enough.",
"zh": {
"status": "reviewed",
"source_hash": "f84868c311ea35756502050cd6f73e9d6659827305979b35e31a681daf9250a5",
"meanings": [
"只有",
"仅仅"
],
"formation": "名词+しか+否定形",
"explanation": "通过否定形式限定范围,表示只有某物或某人。",
"notes": "比だけ更容易带有数量少或不足的语气。",
"examples": [
{
"ja": "財布に五百円しかない。",
"zh": "钱包里只有五百日元。"
},
{
"ja": "このことは、あなたにしか話していません。",
"zh": "这件事我只告诉了你。"
},
{
"ja": "朝はコーヒーしか飲みません。",
"zh": "早上我只喝咖啡。"
}
],
"references": [
"sources/grammar/n4.json#shika-nai",
"Original Chinese authored and reviewed by Codex; no independent human review"
],
"reviewer": "Codex",
"review_method": "ai",
"reviewed_at": "2026-10-28",
"review_hash": "59764abb7240552da7147adac5e51ad17632573f61c8685d488fd540a124c089"
}
}