never

Meanings

1. 1adverbnot comparable

   At no time in the past, present or future; not even once.

   Grammar: Goes before the main verb but after be and auxiliary verbs: I never eat meat, she is never late.

   Patterns

   • never do something
   • have never done something

   I have never seen snow in my life.

   He never answers his phone when he is working.

   They never gave up, even when the odds were terrible.

2. 2adverbnot comparableinformal

   Used for emphasis to mean simply not, in a particular situation, often with a past tense verb.

   Grammar: Replaces did not in casual speech and stories: I never said that means I did not say that.

   Patterns

   • never did something

   I never said you could borrow my car!

   She never turned up to the meeting, so we started without her.

   You never told me the shop was closed on Sundays.

3. 3adverbfixed phraseinformal

   Used in exclamations or questions to express surprise or disbelief, as in never mind or well, I never.

   Grammar: Appears in set expressions such as never mind, never again and never ever.

   Patterns

   • never mind
   • never again
   • never ever

   Never mind the mess, I will clean it up later.

   I will never, ever forget that kindness.

   Never again will I leave my umbrella at home in April.

Common combinations

never again

I got sick on that boat and never again will I go sailing.

never mind

Never mind the cost; the trip is worth it.

never ever

I will never ever lend him money again.

almost never

My brother almost never calls, so this is unusual.

never before

I had never before seen such a huge crowd.

never fail to

She never fails to remember my birthday.

Synonyms and how they differ

not once

Not once is more emphatic and usually refers to a specific past stretch of time, while never covers all time.

at no time

At no time is a formal, slightly stiff phrase often found in reports and legal wording where never would sound casual.

nowhere near

This is not a true synonym; it means very far from, so do not swap it in for never.

not ever

Not ever is a spoken variant that adds emphasis, but never is the normal and shorter choice.

Opposites

Word family

nevermore adverb

never again, in a literary or poetic tone

nevertheless adverb

in spite of that

nonetheless adverb

despite what was just said

Commonly confused: never or ever?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “never”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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