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Tamguatlay Posted 12 years ago
Grammar

Casual usage of "never"

Where I live, "never" is used in reply to questions such as the following.

"Did you take my pen?" "Never."

Do native speakers answer such questions casually using "Never"?

Thanks.
  

Top answer

That sounds very odd to my native ear, but I can see how it might be used to indicate, "No, I would never do that".

— Philip

  • That sounds very odd to my native ear, but I can see how it might be used to indicate, "No, I would never do that".
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3 Answers
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That sounds very odd to my native ear, but I can see how it might be used to indicate, "No, I would never do that".
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It could perhaps also be a shortened form of I never took it. I.e. it wasn't me.
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tamguatlayWhere I live, "never" is used in reply to questions such as the following. "Did you take my pen?" "Never."Do native speakers answer such questions casually using "Never"?Thanks.
This usage seems familiar to me (in the UK). It is sometimes used as a casual emphatic (or dramatic) negative, like "No, definitely not". I don't think it's all that common t
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