never
Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word never. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word never, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say never in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word never you have here. The definition of the word never will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofnever, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Middle English nevere, navere, nævere, from Old English nǣfre (“never”), equivalent to ne + ever.
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /ˈnɛv.ə(ɹ)/
Audio (UK) (file)
- (US) IPA(key): /ˈnɛv.ɚ/
Audio (US) (file)
- Rhymes: -ɛvə(ɹ)
- Hyphenation: nev‧er
Adverb
never (not comparable)
- At no time; on no occasion; in no circumstance.
- 1613–1614 (date written), John Fletcher, William Shak[e]speare, The Two Noble Kinsmen: , London: Tho Cotes, for Iohn Waterson; , published 1634, →OCLC, Act I, scene ii, page 4:
- Why should I love this Gentleman? Tis odds / He never will affect me;
- 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter I, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
- In the old days, to my commonplace and unobserving mind, he gave no evidences of genius whatsoever. He never read me any of his manuscripts, […], and therefore my lack of detection of his promise may in some degree be pardoned.
- 1908, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables, Chapter XXI: A New Departure in Flavorings,
- "I never thought you were so fond of Mr. Phillips that you'd require two handkerchiefs to dry your tears just because he was going away," said Marilla.
- 1919, B. G. Jefferis, J. L. Nichols, Searchlights on Health: Sensible Rules for the Nurse:
- Never speak of the symptoms of your patient in his presence, unless questioned by the doctor, whose orders you are always to obey implicitly.
- 1980, Gerald Ford, “Boyhood—and Beyond”, in A Time to Heal, New York: Berkley Books, →ISBN, page 95:
- "You don't believe the Soviet Union is going to reduce its defense budget, do you?" Boggs asked.
Premier Chou didn't wait for the translator to finish. "Never, never, never," he replied in perfect English.
- I finally finished, and I never want to do that again.
- I repeated the test a hundred times, and never saw a positive result.
- I will never tell.
- Synonyms: see Thesaurus:never
- Not at any other time; not on any other occasion; not previously.
- 1601 November 30, Elizabeth I of England, Elizabeth I's Farewell Speech:
- There is no jewel, be it of never so rich a price, which I set before this jewel: I mean your love.
- 1813 January 27, [Jane Austen], Pride and Prejudice: , volumes (please specify |volume=I to III), London: for T Egerton, , →OCLC:
- "He is just what a young man ought to be," said she, "sensible, good-humoured, lively; and I never saw such happy manners!--so much ease, with such perfect good breeding!"
- 1908, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables, Chapter XIII: The Delights of Anticipation,
- I never saw such an infatuated man.
- (colloquial) Negative particle (used to negate verbs in the simple past tense; also used absolutely).
- The police say I stole the car, but I never did it.
- You said you were going to mow the lawn today. – I never!
- 1905, E. W. Horning, A Thief in the Night:
- "You're never going to break in?"
"This instant, if you'll, help me; in five or ten minutes, if you won't."
Antonyms
Derived terms
Terms derived from never
- a barking dog never bites
- a dumb priest never got a parish
- a magician never reveals his secrets
- a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor
- a watched kettle never boils
- a watched pot never boils
- a watched pot never boils over
- a wild goose never laid a tame egg
- a woman's work is never done
- barking dogs never bite
- better late than never
- cheaters never prosper
- cheats never prosper
- do a never
- faint heart never won fair lady
- first of never
- I have never
- ill-gotten gains never prosper
- ill-gotten gains never prosper
- I never did
- I thought you'd never ask
- it never rains but it pours
- it never rains but that it pours
- it's never too late to mend
- I've never heard it called that before
- lightning never strikes twice
- lightning never strikes twice in the same place
- misfortunes never come alone
- misfortunes never come singly
- nearly never bulled a cow
- never a dull moment
- never again
- never ask the barber if you need a haircut
- never been kissed
- never change a running system
- never-dying
- never eat Shredded Wheat
- never eat soggy waffles
- never eat soggy waffles
- never eat soggy wheat
- never eat soggy wheat
- never-ending
- never event
- never ever
- never ever have I
- never fear
- never fight a land war in Asia
- never have I ever
- never in a million years
- never in a month of Sundays
- never judge a book by its cover
- neverland
- never look a gift horse in the mouth
- never-married
- never meet your heroes
- never mind
- nevermore
- neverness
- never-never
- never-never land
- never-nude
- never put off until tomorrow what you can do today
- never-say-die
- never say die
- never say never
- never sick at sea
- never smoker
- never-smoker
- never start a land war in Asia
- never-sweat
- nevertheless
- never the twain shall meet
- never the wiser
- never the wiser
- never Trumper
- never-Trumper
- never trust me
- Neveruary
- never-was
- never-waser
- never-was-er
- never-was'er
- never-wasser
- never waste a crisis
- never waste a crisis
- never-would-be
- never-wozzer
- never you mind
- Nevuary
- now or never
- one should never meet one's heroes
- on the never never
- September that never ended
- September that never ended
- the apple never falls far from the tree
- the camera never lies
- the course of true love never did run smooth
- the fox may grow grey but never good
- the wolf may lose his teeth but never his nature
- tomorrow never comes
- watched toast never burns
- welcome-home-husband-though-never-so-drunk
- wonders never cease
- you are never too old to learn
- you'll never guess
- you never know
- you never know what you've got till it's gone
- you never miss the water till the well runs dry
- you never miss the water until the well runs dry
- you're never too old to learn
Translations
at no time
|
Interjection
never
- A statement of defiance
Derived terms
Anagrams
Latvian
Verb
never
- inflection of nevērt:
- (with the particle lai) third-person singular imperative of nevērt
- (with the particle lai) third-person plural imperative of nevērt
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology 1
Noun
never f or m (definite singular neveren or nevra, indefinite plural nevrer or nevre, definite plural nevrene)
Etymology 2
Noun
never m
- indefinite plural of neve
References
- “never” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology
Noun
never f (definite singular nevra, indefinite plural nevrar or nevrer, definite plural nevrane or nevrene)
References
- “never” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Romansch
Verb
never