never

[nev-er]

adverb

1. not ever; at no time.

   Such an idea never occurred to me.

2. not at all; absolutely not.

   never mind;

   This will never do.

3. to no extent or degree.

   He was never the wiser for his experience.

never

/ ˈnɛvə /

adverb

1. at no time; not ever

2. certainly not; by no means; in no case

interjection

1. Also: well I never!. surely not!

Usage

In informal speech and writing, never can be used instead of not with the simple past tenses of certain verbs for emphasis ( I never said that; I never realized how clever he was ), but this usage should be avoided in serious writing

Word History and Origins

Origin of never¹

First recorded before 900; from Middle English, from Old English nǣfre, equivalent to ne “not” + ǣfre ever ( def. ); neither ( def. ), nought ( def. )

Word History and Origins

Origin of never¹

Old English nǣfre, from ne not + æfre _ever

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. never cease to amaze. never cease to amaze.

2. never mind, don't bother; don't concern yourself.

More idioms and phrases containing never

• better late than never
• it never rains but it pours
• lightning never strikes twice
• now or never
• watched pot never boils
• wonders will never cease
• you never can tell

Example Sentences

He salutes his players for their endeavour and their pride, but perspective is never far away when he's around.

From BBC

"Once she made the decision, we never felt that she was looking at us as a minor club, compared to the other clubs interested in her."

From BBC

I mean, that’s important to note is that we never, ever stopped talking.

From Los Angeles Times

Duguay said she never received an email informing her of the closure and knows of members who paid their annual fees just days before the announcement was made.

From Los Angeles Times

Remembering my conversation with Hopper while watching his sentencing on Thursday, it was clear that as a journalist you never quite know where a story will take you.

From BBC