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What is the meaning of "just past" in this sentence:

We’re a small community in the forest; people say that no roads lead here, just past.

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‘just’ here means ‘only’. Roads go past the village, but not to it. It's a colorful way of saying that, of the people who use the road, practically none stop at the village.

(Added) The meaning of past is ambiguous. Most commenters take it to mean that the road bypasses the village. I choose instead to read past as ‘beyond’: the road may happen to go through the village, but it was not made for the village; no one using the road is going to the village, they're all going beyond it. (Added also) My reading is supported by the phrase “people say”, which does not normally introduce a statement of literal and readily-confirmed fact.

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  • If the roads pass by a village, then how does it mean different from that no roads lead to that village?
    – Ganesh Sharma
    Commented Jul 8, 2021 at 5:27
  • It means some roads may come near, but they don't actually enter the community.
    – gotube ♦
    Commented Jul 8, 2021 at 6:48
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    The writer chose to say it this way to make a point. There are roads near the village, but the village is so unimportant that nobody bothered to connect them to the village. Why? Because very few people go to the village! It's way more interesting and descriptive than just saying "No roads lead to the village".
    – FeliniusRex - gone
    Commented Jul 8, 2021 at 8:30

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