solely

solely — adverb

1. used to say that only one person, thing, cause, or reason is involved, and that

1.副詞B2
釋義

used to say that only one person, thing, cause, or reason is involved, and that nothing or nobody else takes part or matters.

例句

The final decision rests solely with the board of directors.

solely with [person/group] — shows who holds responsibility

Noor's success was due solely to years of hard work and dedication.

due solely to [reason] — common causal pattern

同義詞
  • only

    far more common in everyday speech; 'solely' is more emphatic and formal

  • exclusively

    can imply deliberate restriction of access or availability; 'solely' is more neutral

  • merely

    weaker — means 'nothing more than' rather than 'nothing other than'

  • purely

    focuses on an unmixed reason or motive, while 'solely' can apply to participants or agents too

反義詞
  • partially

    involves only some aspects rather than the whole

  • jointly

    involves multiple people together, not one alone

文法句型

solely + preposition (for, by, on, to, with)

solely + because / because of

due solely to [reason / cause]

based solely on [criterion]

用法筆記

Solely is more formal than 'only' and is typically placed immediately before the word or phrase it emphasises — a preposition (solely for, solely by), a conjunction (solely because), or an adjective. Unlike 'only', it cannot express recency ('I saw her only yesterday' ✗ cannot use 'solely').

常見錯誤

❌He called solely yesterday.' (meaning 'just yesterday')
✅He called only yesterday.
💡'solely' cannot express recency; it only means 'exclusively.'
❌She is solely a teacher at the school.' (unnatural placement)
✅She is a teacher solely at the school.' or better: 'She works solely at the school.
💡'solely' typically modifies the following phrase, not the noun.