彼らは形だけの挨拶をした。

they (usually male); them

topic marker particle; indicates contrast with another option (stated or unstated); adds emphasis

form; shape; figure; visage

only; just; merely; simply; no more than; nothing but; alone; as (e.g. as soon as, as much as); worth

indicates possessive; nominalizes verbs and adjectives; substitutes for "ga" in subordinate phrases; (at sentence-end, falling tone) indicates a confident conclusion; (at sentence-end) indicates emotional emphasis; (at sentence-end, rising tone) indicates question

greeting; greetings; salutation; salute; polite set phrase used when meeting or parting from somebody; polite set phrase used to express apology, sympathy, congratulations, etc.; speech (congratulatory or appreciative); address; reply; response; revenge; retaliation; a fine thing to say (used as part of a sarcastic response to a rude remark); dialoging (with another Zen practitioner to ascertain their level of enlightenment)

indicates direct object of action; indicates subject of causative expression; indicates an area traversed; indicates time (period) over which action takes place; indicates point of departure or separation of action; indicates object of desire, like, hate, etc.

to do; to cause to become; to make (into); to turn (into); to serve as; to act as; to work as; to wear (clothes, a facial expression, etc.); to judge as being; to view as being; to think of as; to treat as; to use as; to decide on; to choose; to be sensed (of a smell, noise, etc.); to be (in a state, condition, etc.); to be worth; to cost; to pass (of time); to elapse; verbalizing suffix (applies to nouns noted in this dictionary with the part of speech "vs"); creates a humble verb (after a noun prefixed with "o" or "go"); to be just about to; to be just starting to; to try to; to attempt to