Learn Romanian › numai
numai
only /nuˈmaj/
adverb#225 most common
Also: just, solely, merely
Example sentences
Am numai un leu.
I have only one leu.
Ea vorbește numai engleză acasă.
She speaks only English at home.
Numai el știe adevărul.
Only he knows the truth.
Nu poți reuși numai cu noroc.
You can't succeed on luck alone.
Numai să nu întârzii la interviu.
Just don't be late for the interview.
Numai cine a trecut prin asta poate înțelege cu adevărat greutatea deciziei.
Only someone who has lived through that can truly understand the weight of the decision.
Word family
Etymology
Numai formed from the fusion of nu (not) and mai (more), both inherited from Latin: nu from non and mai from magis. The original sense was close to "no more (than this)", which narrowed over time into the restrictive meaning "only". The fused spelling as one word reflects this shift from a phrase to a single adverb.
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Start free