Japanese

Alternative forms

• 許り

Particle

ばかり ‎(romaji bakari)

1. (〜たばかり -ta bakari) just (recently completed action)

   食 (た)べたばかりだ。

   Tabeta bakari da.

   I just ate.

2. (noun + ばかり) full of

   東京 (とうきょう)は人 (ひと)ばかりだ。

   Tōkyō wa hito bakari da.

   Tokyo is just full of people.

3. (〜てばかり -te bakari) only, always

   彼 (かれ)は食 (た)べてばかり居 (い)る。

   Kare wa tabete bakari iru.

   He's always eating.

Usage notes

Used in various senses, similarly to English just – just did something, just full of, just sitting there. Senses are distinguished grammatically, as per forms above. The kanji form 許り is rarely used.

Derived terms

• ばかし ‎(bakashi) (same meaning; informal, speech)
• ばっか ‎(bakka) (same meaning; informal, speech)

References

1. ↑ 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
2. ↑ 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13905-9