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phrase introduced by a verb ("This fish can only be caught with dry flies"), we naturally assume either that the use of worms or other fish bait is prohibited and not that the fish's being hooked and reeled in is an inevitability if dry flies are employed. The finny creature can not swim, jump, spawn. All such other fish activities are out of the question; it can do nothing else but be caught.

If you are troubled by the positioning of "only," or any other adverb, the important thing is to eliminate all possibility of misinterpretation. Bear in mind the differences between spoken and written English. If we speak the sentence "pregnant women should drink only decaf coffee," we put stress on the "only," and our meaning is clear. Hearers will not interpret that pregnant women can only drink the stuff but not snort it or rub it on their bodies.

The writer, unable to add meaning through stress, must compensate by careful placement of the adverb. It must be either "I can drink only decaf coffee because caffeine gives me physical problems."

To buttress identification of the most misused word in the language, here is a quote from Bryan A. Garner's "A Dictionary of Modern American Usage." He states on page 469, "'only' is perhaps the most frequently misplaced of all English words," and gives three lengthy quotations from published works along with his suggestions and reasons for the repositioning of the word. Furthermore he cites H. W. Fowler's permissiveness on the subject but states, "The problem with Fowler's view is that what for one person is merely technically' obscure may for another person be a full-fledged ambiguity.

It comes down not only to the differences between spoken and written English but also the degree of formality of the writing. Rules can be relaxed when writing a note to a friend, but strictures apply in formal thesis writing.

To put it both more simply and melodically,thank Heaven that the composers of the still familiar song written in 1934 titled it "I Only Have Eyes For You." Obviously "I Have Eyes Only For You" would not have been singable. Nor would "I Have Eyes For You Only." And that's about it for the most commonly misused word in the language. . .only. . . .

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