never

American  

[nev-er] / ˈnɛv ər /

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.

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idioms

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

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

never British  

/ ˈnɛvə /

adverb

1. at no time; not ever

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

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interjection

1. Also: well I never!.  surely not!

never More Idioms  

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

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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

Etymology

Origin of never

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

Explanation

The adverb never means "at no time," or "not at all." If you're never going to win a Monopoly game against your brother, you won't beat him next week, next year, or when you're both 80 years old. Something that never happens didn't occur in the past and won't ever occur in the future, either. Never is a blunt, absolute kind of word. If you wonder whether your dad will let you drive his BMW some day, and he responds, "That's never going to happen," you can forget about it. The Old English root is næfre, a compound of ne, "not or no," and æfre, "ever."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

never

After 22 years, he is getting that chance, but with a twist: The team might never exist.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

David Plotz: I had never heard of this concept in your book and I was like, ‘That’s an amazing concept.’

From Slate ● Sep. 19, 2026

He never graduated from college and has spent much of his career farming and running a charitable foundation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026

"In a place like this, you'll take it in. You'd be surprised how many times I found myself in a place reminding myself I will never be here again."

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

I cry thinking of all the music she never got to make.

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold