At a glance
～きり means "only" after a noun, and "since (doing X), nothing more has happened" after a verb in た-form. The verb use is usually followed by something that has not happened since.
Noun + きり / っきり
Verb (た-form) + きり
彼は出かけたきり、帰ってこない。 He went out and hasn't come back.
How to form it
| Attaches to | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Number of people or times | 二人きり / 一度きり | just the two of us / only once |
| これ / それ / あれ | それきり | since then (nothing more) |
| う-verb た-form | 行ったきり | went and (never came back) |
| る-verb た-form | 食べたきり | ate and (nothing since) |
| する | したきり | did and (nothing since) |
| 来る | 来たきり | came and (nothing since) |
っきり (二人っきり, それっきり) is the casual, spoken version. きり is neutral.