Expressing "that's all" with "eryi"

而已 expresses that something is merely what it is. It is like saying "it's only a test, that's all." 而已 is put at the end of the sentence to emphasis that something is just what it is.

Structure

Whenever you need to emphasize that something is just what it is and nothing more, you can stick 而已 at the end of the sentence. You can also use it in combination with 仅仅, which means "merely", though it is optional.

Subject + （仅仅）+ 是 + Object + 而已

Examples

• 不 要 听 他 的 话，他 只 是 开玩笑 而已。
• 这 一次 会议 没 有 具体 的 目标 方向，仅仅 是 建立 共识 而已。

× 这 辆 车 没 有 什么 特别，它 仅仅 是 普通 的 汽车 而已。

Sources and further reading

NEEDS SOURCES!!

HSK6