endast

Endast is a Swedish adverb meaning "only" or "merely." It is used to limit the scope of a statement and is commonly placed directly before the element it limits. For example, "Endast fem personer deltog i mötet" indicates that only five people participated. The word can also introduce conditional or restrictive clauses, as in "Endast om du kommer i tid kan du delta."

In usage, endast tends to be more formal or written than the everyday synonym bara. It appears frequently in official texts, instructions, signs, and editorial prose where a precise limitation is desired. While many speakers prefer bara in casual speech, endasst remains common in contexts that require a clear or emphatic restriction, such as regulations or formal announcements. It can also occur at the beginning of a clause: "Endast studenter får delta."

Grammatical placement is straightforward: endast typically modifies the noun phrase or the clause that follows. It precedes the element it limits, for example "Endast en dag," "Endast två bilar," or "Endast om alla kommer i tid kan projektet starta." It can also appear after a phrase like "Det kostar" to form constructions such as "Det kostar endast fem kronor" or "Det är endast en liten del av problemet." In sum, endasst is a versatile, formal marker of exclusivity in Swedish, with bara as its common spoken counterpart.