never

adverb

nev·​er ˈne-vər How to pronounce never (audio)
1
: not ever : at no time
I never met her
2
: not in any degree : not under any condition
never the wiser for his experience

Examples of never in a Sentence

I will never shop at that store again. I have never seen that happen before. That man has never heard of you. We will never forget what we saw. You never know what you'll find at a flea market. I never meant to hurt you. She never really said that. There is never enough time to finish our work. Never in my whole life have I been so offended! I gave him my business for years and never for one moment did I suspect that he was a criminal.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Across the country there are 28 additional federal court vacancies for which Biden never named a nominee, most of them in red states whose senators probably would have opposed his picks. Tobi Raji The Washington Post, arkansasonline.com, 23 Nov. 2024 The cause was never far from the minds of those present with many sporting the colors of the Palestinian flag in their lapels. John Bleasdale, Variety, 23 Nov. 2024 The service, which allows account recovery through ID verification with partner Onfido, was seen by some critics as a betrayal of Ledger’s core promise: private keys never leave the device. Nina Bambysheva, Forbes, 22 Nov. 2024 The stakes are low, the food is delicious, and there’s never been a better time to declare it your favorite holiday. Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 22 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for never 

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English nǣfre, from ne not + ǣfre ever — more at no

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of never was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near never

Cite this Entry

“Never.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/never. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

never

adverb
nev·​er ˈnev-ər How to pronounce never (audio)
1
: not ever : at no time
I never saw it before
never had a sick day in my life
2
: not to any extent or in any way
never fear

More from Merriam-Webster on never

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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