A lonely Alonely Only

This was originally in JustGetThereJustOnFoot because of similar behavior with ‘just’.

Also read NotJustAPrettyFace

Japanese uses its equivalent to ‘only’ in non-ambiguous (?) ways that are ambiguous in English.

The Japanese examples were, in English,

• ‘This is cured with only an injection,’ and
• ‘This is cured only with an injection.’

In one case, there is a big medical problem, in the other it’s not a big problem.

The second ‘only with’ indicates the big problem, ‘with only’, not.

• ‘with only an injection’: merely with an injection
• ‘only with an injection’: in no other way than with an injection

What about with ‘just’ instead of ‘only’?

• ‘This is cured with just an injection’ is the no-big-problem one?
• ‘This is just cured with an injection’ is ambiguous?

The other example was, translated:

• ‘You can’t go only by bus’ and
• ‘You only can’t go by bus’

In one, all other means of transport are available to you to get there. In the other, bus services taking you there don’t exist. At least part of the way, you have to take the train, or some other means of transport.

But which is which?

‘The only way you can’t go is by bus.’ is more idiomatic, I think, but the example in Japanese was not idiomatic, either? There was an explanation of its meaning.

‘You can’t go only by bus’ is also not idiomatic.

“You only can’t ..” makes sense after, “You can do A and B. You only can’t do C”. Or no?

“The only thing you can’t do is C” is more idiomatic.

“only can’t” usually appears as “not only can’t” on google books.

I need to find an idiomatic version of ‘You can’t go only by bus’ which is minimally different than ‘The only way you can’t go is by bus.’ but still means bus services will not take you all the way from A to B.

• Man does not live by bread alone.
• You cannot go by bus alone.

The original Japanese was contrasting the equivalent of ‘with/by only’ and ‘only with/by’

What about, ‘Only by bus, you cannot go.’ It’s also unidiomatic?

That requires me to change ‘You cannot go by bus alone’ to something more similar to ‘The only way you can’t go is by bus.’

• ‘You can’t get there only by bus’,
• ‘By bus is the only way you can’t get there.’

Pretty succinct, but not a minimal pair.

It worked with,

• ‘This’s cured with only an injection’ and
• ’This is cured only with an injection.

‘The bus is the only way you can’t get there.’

Is that OK? Is it idiomatic? No.

‘You can get there any way, except by bus’. Or,

‘The only way you can’t go is by bus’.

It doesn’t go to the destination you want to go to. If you’re going from A to D, there’s a bus from A to B and one from C to D. But there’s no bus between B and C. You have to take the train or some other means of transport.

So you can’t take the bus the whole way.

You can’t get there only by bus/by bus alone. You can get there only part of the way by bus.

The other sentence says that all other means of transport will get you there. All, except by bus.

https://www.csl.sri.com/users/neumann/only.html discusses ambiguity with the role of placement and the disambiguating role of sentence stress emphasis.

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