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

At times, those on the margins get inside, if only briefly, and others, who were established, get spit out. —Deborah Treisman, The New Yorker, 2 Feb. 2025

There’s good reason to want change, if only to provide some sense of stability. —The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 30 Jan. 2025

The film is jam-packed with wonderful ideas, though it’s seldom allowed to bring them all to fruition, if only because its zombies feel less like a pressing danger (or even metaphors) and more like trite interruptions. —Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 29 Jan. 2025

Meanwhile, while there may still be a secular public school in this community, if only a small handful of students attend this traditional public school, that school will most likely lack the resources of the Lutheran school, and will offer an inferior education. —Ian Millhiser, Vox, 28 Jan. 2025