How to Use but in a Sentence

but

preposition
Definition of butnext
Synonyms for butnext
  • Who but you would think that?
  • There was no one there but him.
  • I didn't tell anyone but my sister.
  • Thus the world cannot help but sway to the Fed’s tunes.
    — The Economist, 14 June 2018
  • Why play by the rules of a world that brought you nothing but fear?
    — Amanda Petrusich, The New Yorker, 23 Aug. 2019
  • Now the Cubs don’t have to do anything but open the gates.
    — Paul Sullivan, chicagotribune.com, 3 July 2018
  • The last week my mindset has just been nothing but wins.
    — Shawn Courchesne, courant.com, 4 Aug. 2019
  • Still, Couper had nothing but nice things to say about the wedge.
    — Nick Kindelsperger, chicagotribune.com, 21 June 2018
  • But what about those without any choice but to get married in the fall?
    — Ben Flanagan, AL.com, 27 Oct. 2017
  • There is no other way but to give a clear message to the public.
    — Jim Daley, Scientific American, 7 Aug. 2019
  • But the weeks leading up to that photo were anything but adorable.
    — Christina Oehler, Health.com, 13 May 2020
  • The hard thing is that this is anything but an ordinary case.
    — Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 25 July 2019
  • The sauce should have a pleasant orange flavor but not be too sweet.
    — Daniel Neman, sacbee, 26 June 2018
  • Antek kissed no one but his wife and served no man anything but whisky and beer.
    — Bill Savage, Chicago Reader, 13 June 2018
  • Firefighters had no choice but to sit back and hope the fire wouldn't grow in the meantime.
    — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, 18 June 2018
  • So the notion that this has been anything but amazing for the far left and the far right is just ridiculous.
    — Eric Johnson, Recode, 28 Sep. 2018
  • Nicky Lopez had little choice but to just keep his head down and grind.
    — Blake Baumgartner, Naperville Sun, 7 July 2018
  • There's a time zone that's nothing but ocean, in case the fish have watches.
    — Ken Jennings, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Jan. 2018
  • Better yet, do it and tell no one but your favorite group chat.
    — Connie Wang & Lily Fulop, Refinery29, 7 Apr. 2020
  • Despite the pleas for calm, the nation seemed anything but as a fitful week drew to a close.
    — Robert Klemko, BostonGlobe.com, 29 May 2020
  • But the young dictator has turned out to be anything but a puppet.
    — Charlie Campbell/singapore, Time, 14 June 2018
  • On the whole, space is mostly empty, but the space around the Earth is anything but.
    — Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, 3 Apr. 2018
  • Some face little choice but to sell out to those live music giants.
    — Chris Payne, Billboard, 24 Sep. 2019
  • This was anything but a good-faith effort to comply with the agreement.
    — Emily K. Coleman, Lake County News-Sun, 19 Apr. 2018
  • Nvidia Graphs are supposed to be hard math, but this one is anything but.
    — Brad Chacos, PCWorld, 13 Sep. 2018
  • Her earrings on the other hand were anything but subtle.
    — Michelle Manetti, Good Housekeeping, 11 May 2018
  • The fire left behind nothing but the steel frame and part of the T-Rex’s tail.
    — Matthew Martinez, star-telegram, 23 Mar. 2018
  • There is like nothing but tiny high heels and fingernails sticking out of this thing.
    — Sarah Rodman, EW.com, 6 Sep. 2019
  • Almost no one believes the sentence is anything but crazy.
    — Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 24 Oct. 2017
  • In all good stories, the hero wants something but faces an obstacle.
    — John Lanchester, The New Yorker, 29 July 2019

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'but.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: