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Originally Posted by Taka Why "flexible" that way? "However" vs. "only"...How are they related to each other?? |
As an adverb,
but (meaning, nothing more than) is synonymous with
only:
EX: He was only/but a child"
EX: Hopes that last but/only a moment
Note their origin in Old English (OE),
but (adv.) unless, without,
outside (of);
only (adv.) unique,
solitary. There's a semantic tie between
outside (of) and
solitary .
As a conjunction,
but was not used as a conjunction in OE. Today,
but (meaning with the exception that) is synonymous with
however. Both mark an opposition in passing from one thought to another; possible tie:
outside of the fact that...
EX: This is not winter,
but it is almost as cold.
EX: This is not winter; it is,
however, almost as cold
Usage:
but marks the opposition with a medium degree of strength.
however is weaker, and throws the opposition into the background. (
still is stronger than
but, and marks the opposition more emphatically.)
Source 
but 
:D 
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