Word
ne'er
Phoneticsneer
/ˈnɪɹ/
Definition
adj. a short way of saying 'never'. You mostly see this in old poems or songs.
adj. a contraction of 'never', used primarily in poetic or literary contexts to maintain meter.
Examples
“He will ne'er return to his home again.”
“The old ballad tells the story of a sailor who promised he would ne'er forget his true love.”
“Though the winds howl and the seas rise, the captain swore that he would ne'er abandon his post until every passenger was safe.”
Examples
simple
“He will ne'er return to his home again.”
contextual
“The old ballad tells the story of a sailor who promised he would ne'er forget his true love.”
complex
“Though the winds howl and the seas rise, the captain swore that he would ne'er abandon his post until every passenger was safe.”
Usage
A contraction of 'never' used in verse; typically precedes the verb it modifies.
Etymology
Contraction of never.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.