Three Senses, One Page
ばかり is doing several unrelated jobs, and keeping them apart is the whole lesson.
1. Nothing but — an exclusive, usually disapproving.
- 甘いものばかり食べている。(He eats nothing but sweets.)
2. てばかりいる — does nothing but, repeatedly.
- 文句を言ってばかりいる。(All he does is complain.)
3. ばかりだ — a trend heading one way, and not a good one.
- 状況は悪くなるばかりだ。(The situation only gets worse.)
Against だけ
Both mean "only", and they are not interchangeable:
| Pattern | Sense |
|---|---|
| だけ | only that much — a neutral limit |
| ばかり | nothing but — a complaint about the imbalance |
千円だけ is exactly a thousand yen. 千円ばかり is roughly a thousand and sounds dated. For quantities, use だけ.
Not たばかり
The た form gives a completely different meaning — "just did":
| Pattern | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 食べ**たばかり** | I've just eaten |
| 食べてばかりいる | I do nothing but eat |
The た is the whole difference. This is the pairing most worth drilling.
ばかりだ vs 一方だ
Both describe a one-way trend. 一方だ is neutral and formal; ばかりだ carries frustration.