不光 bùguāng not the only one
not the only one; not only
How to remember 不光: 不 not + 光 light = not the only one.
Characters
How it is used
- 不光 (bùguāng) is a colloquial equivalent of 不但/不仅 (búdàn/bùjǐn), meaning 'not only,' and pairs with 也/还/连…也 in the second clause: 他不光会说中文，还会说日文 (tā bùguāng huì shuō Zhōngwén, hái huì shuō Rìwén) - he can not only speak Chinese but also Japanese.
- It has a strong spoken flavor and is less used in formal writing, where 不仅 or 不但 is preferred.
- Don't confuse this 光 with 'light'; here 光 functions like 只/仅, meaning 'only,' so 不光 literally parses as 'not only.'