This means someone does only one thing. They do it too much. It often shows a bad feeling about it.
Noun + ばかりPrimary
Verb [て-form] + ばかり + いるPrimary
Verb [た-form] + ばかり
Verb [dictionary form] + ばかり + だ
This means someone does only one thing. They do it too much. It often shows a bad feeling about it.
息子は毎日ゲームばかりしている。
My son does nothing but play games every day.
昼ご飯を食べたばかりなので、お腹がいっぱいです。
I'm full because I just ate lunch.
甘いものばかり食べていないで、野菜も食べなさい。
Don't just eat sweets, eat some vegetables too.
彼は昔、自分のことばかり考えていた。
In the past, he only ever thought about himself.
日本に来たばかりの頃は、日本語が全く分かりませんでした。
When I had just arrived in Japan, I couldn't understand Japanese at all.
This grammar shows you just did something. You feel like it was very recent. Even if some time has passed, you still feel its effects. It's like saying 'I just ate' when you are still full, even hours later.
This is different from 'だけ' and 'しか〜ない'. 'だけ' just means 'only'. 'しか〜ない' means 'only' and you wish there was more. 'ばかり' means 'only' in a way that shows too much of something. It often sounds like a complaint.
Watch out: Do not mix up '〜ばかり' and '〜ばかりか'. '〜ばかり' means 'only' or 'nothing but'. It shows a limit. '〜ばかりか' means 'not only... but also...'. It shows more things are added. For example, '彼は英語ばかり話す' means 'He speaks only English'. '彼は英語ばかりか、フランス語も話す' means 'He speaks not only English, but also French'.
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