Not only: 〜に限らず
Noun + に限らず
Noun + に限らず: “not only A (but others too)”. More written than だけでなく; what follows often contains も or だれでも / どこでも.
In short
〜に限らず (“without being limited to”) widens a statement: what's true for A is also true for others. 京都に限らず、日本中で: “not only in Kyoto, but all over Japan”. What follows often contains も, みんな, どこでも, いつでも.
- 京都に限らず、日本中のお祭りは人が多い。きょうとにかぎらず、にほんじゅうのおまつりはひとがおおい。Not just in Kyoto: all over Japan, festivals draw big crowds.
- この店は、若者に限らず、お年寄りにも人気がある。このみせは、わかものにかぎらず、おとしよりにもにんきがある。This shop is popular not only with young people, but with older people too.
- 週末に限らず、平日も観光客が多い。しゅうまつにかぎらず、へいじつもかんこうきゃくがおおい。There are lots of tourists, not only at weekends, but on weekdays too.
The basics
限らず is the written negative form (ず = ない) of 限る: “without being limited to”. You cite an expected example (A), then say it's not only A: the thing is general — English “not only… but”, “not just”.
The second part widens the scope with も (also), or with an all-inclusive word: みんな, だれでも, どこでも, いつでも, 日本中.
Not just in Kyoto: all over Japan, festivals draw big crowds.
- noun
- grammatical form
- adjective
- これは日本に限らず、世界中の問題だ。これはにほんにかぎらず、せかいじゅうのもんだいだ。This isn't a problem unique to Japan, it's a global one.
How to form it
に限らず goes after a noun, with no particle in between. With a verb, 〜だけでなく is preferred. To describe a noun, you use 〜に限らない: 日本に限らない問題, “a problem that isn't limited to Japan”.
| Construction | Example |
|---|---|
| Noun + に限らず | 日本に限らず |
| Noun + に限らず、〜も | 子どもに限らず、大人も |
| Noun + に限らず、だれでも / どこでも | 男女に限らず、だれでも |
| verb → だけでなく | 見るだけでなく、作るのも好きだ |
- アニメは、見るだけでなく、作るのも好きです。あにめは、みるだけでなく、つくるのもすきです。Anime — I don't just like watching it, I like making it too.
- このサービスは、会員に限らず、どなたでも使えます。このさーびすは、かいいんにかぎらず、どなたでもつかえます。This service is open to everyone, not only members.
に限らず, だけでなく, ばかりか
だけでなく is the most common and works with nouns, verbs and adjectives. に限らず is a little more written and is used mostly with a noun standing for a category (age, place, season, sex). ばかりか (stronger) adds a surprising element.
- 彼は英語だけでなく、フランス語も話せる。かれはえいごだけでなく、ふらんすごもはなせる。He speaks not only English, but French too.
- 子どもばかりか、大人まで夢中になっている。こどもばかりか、おとなまでむちゅうになっている。Not only children, but even adults are crazy about it.
Common mistakes
- Attaching に限らず straight to a verb: “見るに限らず” is clumsy; you'd rather say 見るだけでなく.
- Mixing up に限らず (not only) and に限る (nothing beats).
- Forgetting to widen the scope in the second part: after に限らず, you expect も, だれでも, どこでも…
7 exercises on this point
Particles to choose, sentences to put back in order, translations: marked straight away, then reviewed at the right time. This JLPT N3 point is on the Kosei Line (Thinking and deciding) of the Kyoto lines.