Intermediate だけ: "As Y as you X" and "Only X (and nothing else)"

Introduction

だけ's back, with a vengeance.

This time, you'll learn how to deftly use だけ to destroy detrimental dangers. What does that mean exactly? I'm not sure. I just wanted to make an alliteration.

Intermediate だけ

構成こうせい

• 

  (potential form

  conjugation that describes an ability, or that something is possible (e.g. {食|た}べる → {食|た}べられる, {飲|の}む → {飲|の}める)

  verb)だけ

• 

  (たい form

  conjugation used to express want or desire to do said verb (e.g. {食|た}べる → {食|た}べたい "To want to eat")

  verb)だけ

• 

  ～ほしいだけ

• 

  (な-adjective)なだけ
  Example:
  → たくさんあるから、好すきなだけ食たべてね。
  "There's lots, so eat as much as you like.”

You're not a beginner anymore, so it's time to release だけ’s secret usages, starting with "as much as"!

And you may be wondering: "Doesn't だけ mean "only" or "just"? What's with this new meaning?". Although だけ can indeed be used to express "only/just", it's also quite valid to think of だけ as taking a precise measurement of what it attaches to.