ever

adverb

ev·​er ˈe-vər How to pronounce ever (audio)
Synonyms of evernext
1
: always
ever striving to improve
the ever-increasing population
2
a
: at any time
more than ever before
b
: in any way
how can I ever thank you
3
—used as an intensive
looks ever so angry
am I ever happy to see you
Phrases
ever and anon
: from time to time : occasionally

Synonyms

See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus 

Examples of ever in a Sentence

The crime rate is higher now than it has ever been. He's forgotten all he's ever learned about history. Have you ever been to France? She's doing fine and is as pretty as ever. No one has ever seen a better example of woodwork. Has this ever been done before? Did it ever occur to you that I might like more myself? That was the worst movie I ever saw. Technology in recent years has become ever more sophisticated. The deadline draws ever closer.
Recent Examples on the Web This would be the first time Randall ever saw Black artists do a country song. —Steve Hochman, SPIN, 15 Apr. 2024 The fourth implication is that normalization between the Saudis and the Israelis is more likely than ever. —Gadi Ezra, TIME, 15 Apr. 2024 Rayner said a park ranger told her that this year there are now more bluebirds than ever. —Jennifer Dixon, Detroit Free Press, 15 Apr. 2024 More:Has anyone in Arizona ever won the Powerball jackpot? —The Arizona Republic, 15 Apr. 2024 In November 2023, Bosch, SAP, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise backed a $500 million Series B funding round, marking one of Europe’s biggest AI funding rounds ever. —Prarthana Prakash, Fortune Europe, 15 Apr. 2024 The largest Powerball jackpot ever won was in November 2022, when a single winner in California walked away with the $2.04 billion prize. —Emily Deletter, USA TODAY, 3 Apr. 2024 Yet Pixar no longer reliably churns out hits, legendary properties like Star Wars have withered on the vine, and even the once indestructible MCU suffered its lowest box office ever in The Marvels when adjusted for inflation. —Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2024 The faint star system — the tiniest Milky Way satellite ever found — could be under the influence of dark matter. —Isaac Schultz / Gizmodo, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ever.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English ǣfre

First Known Use

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

Time Traveler
The first known use of ever was before the 12th century

Phrases Containing ever

Dictionary Entries Near ever

eveque

ever

ever after

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Ever.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ever. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.

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Kids Definition

ever

adverb
ev·​er ˈev-ər How to pronounce ever (audio)
1
: at all times : always
ever faithful
2
a
: at any time
has this ever been done before
b
: in any way : at all
how can I ever thank you
3
—used especially with so to give more force to a word
thank you ever so much

More from Merriam-Webster on ever

Nglish: Translation of ever for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of ever for Arabic Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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