never
part of speech
adverb (never)
meaning for a pupil
1) Never means not at any time, not even once. tree →
2) Never can also mean «not» in a strong way: «Never mind» means do not worry about it. tree →
3) «Never ever» is a strong way to say never. tree →
4) (casual, UK, Ireland) «Never!» or «you never!» means I can't believe it: «He ate 12? Never!» tree →
5) (casual, UK) «I never» often means simply «I didn't» about one time: «I never touched it!» tree →
6) (rough) «Never in a million years» and «not never» (broken grammar) mean a strong no: «I ain't never doing that.» tree →
7) (formal) «At no time», «on no occasion» and «under no circumstances» are the stiff forms: «Under no circumstances may the door be left open.» tree →
sense in the lessons
In maths: a word of the story; tells that something did not happen, so that amount is zero. In everyday life: rules and safety («never touch a hot stove», «never talk to strangers online»); habits and promises. In science: «never» is a strong claim that one counter-example can prove wrong. In stories: «Never had she seen such a big cake», «Never again!»; «never mind», «better late than never». In casual talk it is surprise or denial. In the exam voice: «at no time did…». Phrases: «never mind», «never again», «never ever», «now or never», «never say never».
examples
- She never eats the red candies. tree →
- He never misses a day of practice. tree →
- Tom never spends his coins. tree →
- Never cross the road without looking both ways. tree →
- I have never been on a plane. tree →
- Never mind, we can try again tomorrow. tree →
- A square never has five sides. tree →
- Better late than never! tree →
- «She got 20 out of 20.» «Never! Seriously?» (casual) tree →
- I never took your crisps, ask him (casual, means «I didn't») tree →
- Never in a million years, mate — sod off. (rough) tree →
- At no time did the number of passengers exceed 40; state the maximum possible number. (formal exam) tree →
note
«Never» means zero times; that amount stays the same. Trap: if he never eats the red ones, the red ones are not taken away. Opposite: always. Do not use another «not» with it: say «I never saw it», not «I never didn't see it»; «ain't never» is rough broken grammar. Casual «Never!» is surprise, not a number. Casual «I never did it» means «I did not do it» once, not «at no time ever». In science, be careful with «never»: one example the other way proves the claim wrong. Formal «at no time» = never; «did not exceed» means it was that number or less.
In the corpora
- These things are worrying, but they are almost never anyone's fault at home, and most families get through them.
- Most grown-ups keep their money in a bank account, and most of it is never seen as notes and coins.
- Some illnesses in old age never go away; doctors call them chronic, and they can be controlled but not cured.
- When a grown-up drinks too much, it is never the child's fault and never the child's job to fix.
- The easiest way never to have a hard habit is never to start one.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «never» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.