if only
idiom
—used to talk about something that one wants to happen or be true
If only she loved me in return!
If only it would stop raining.
Examples of if only in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Each of the three biographies—any good biography—vibrates with the intensity of its author’s possession by their subject and the thrill of exhumation, if only metaphoric.
—
Megan Marshall
september 25, Literary Hub, 25 Sep. 2025
This assessment, though probably true of celebrity figures in general, strikes me as especially apt in Sheen’s case, if only thanks to his constancy in our media landscape over the past four decades.
—Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 20 Sep. 2025
Even when Osborne dips into country or wraps with a hint of reggae, its songs rip – if only in the sense of ripping off a Band-Aid.
—Joe Lynch, Billboard, 19 Sep. 2025
But if only one of Gil or Schlitter can make the postseason rotation, the other would serve as a safer addition to the relief corp than Warren.
—Jon Vankin, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Sep. 2025
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Megan Marshall
september 25, Literary Hub, 25 Sep. 2025
This assessment, though probably true of celebrity figures in general, strikes me as especially apt in Sheen’s case, if only thanks to his constancy in our media landscape over the past four decades.
—Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 20 Sep. 2025
Even when Osborne dips into country or wraps with a hint of reggae, its songs rip – if only in the sense of ripping off a Band-Aid.
—Joe Lynch, Billboard, 19 Sep. 2025
But if only one of Gil or Schlitter can make the postseason rotation, the other would serve as a safer addition to the relief corp than Warren.
—Jon Vankin, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for if only
Cite this Entry
“If only.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/if%20only. Accessed 4 Oct. 2025.
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