Is it right to say “Ever have I done…?

Question

Is it right to say “Ever have I done something wrong in my life“ &“Ever have I been to that basketball academy“. So , these are two different examples I have chosen for sentence Ever have I.

haven’t done anything wrong & been to basketball academy. I want to know if my sentences are correct.

I'm a bit confused by your question. Do you want to say that you have not done anything wrong and you have not been to that basketball academy. The way you have writtem the question makes it look as though you haven't done anything wrong but you have been to the academy. — BoldBen, Dec 30 '21 at 07:19
@BoldBen Yes. I’m not sure if the way I have used the sentence is correct or not. — S.M.T, Dec 30 '21 at 07:20
Please could you make it clear whether the sentence you are trying to write makes a statement or asks a question. — Rosie F, Dec 30 '21 at 12:33
Théoden's "Simbelmynë. Ever has it grown on the tombs of my forebears...." (Tolkien) is peerless and similar attempts to use this style should be considered with great caution. — Edwin Ashworth, Dec 30 '21 at 16:27
Does this answer your question? 'Yet' is to 'already' as what is to 'eventually'? Could 'never' do? — Edwin Ashworth, Dec 30 '21 at 16:29
Are you trying to use ever to mean never or to mean always? — tchrist, Dec 30 '21 at 18:46
The question and its accompanying explanatory comment seem partly contradictory and also incomplete. In its present form the question is therefore unclear and lacks detail. — Anton, Dec 30 '21 at 22:22
I’m voting to close this question because it and the accompanying comment remain unclear and partly contradictory. — Anton, Dec 30 '21 at 22:23

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Dec 30 '21 at 09:33

3

Ever is not a negative polarity item (NPI), and consequently "Ever have I..." is a positive statement where ever can [slightly awkwardly] be replaced by always.

It's particularly poetic: one might expect a statement such as "Ever have I loved her" meaning "I have always loved her". A couple of examples

The counterpart is never: "Never have I done anything wrong." Note the use of anything (another NPI, to match never). To use ever as in "Ever have I..." would need to be "Ever have I done something wrong," meaning "I always get something wrong."

answered Dec 30 '21 at 09:33

Andrew Leach

101,901

So , I am correct with my sentence formation right ? Not the meaning but at least sentence – S.M.T Dec 30 '21 at 09:40
2

"Ever have I done something wrong" is correct but extremely literary/poetic. But it doesn't mean what you want it to mean. – Andrew Leach Dec 30 '21 at 09:43
2

John Lawler disagrees. – Edwin Ashworth Dec 30 '21 at 16:03
@EdwinAshworth Well, it's not often I disagree with him! Feel free to write a better answer where ever is negative and valid in "Ever have I..." – Andrew Leach Dec 30 '21 at 16:11
From John's post: 'Ever is the word you're looking for. Both ever and yet, along with any, are Negative Polarity Items. ... It isn't never, which is a negative trigger itself, not a polarity item.' – Edwin Ashworth Dec 30 '21 at 16:20
2

Well, as I say, feel free to demonstrate all this in an answer. "Ever have I..." is not negative; it means always. – Andrew Leach Dec 30 '21 at 16:37
It used to mean always. Now it's an NPI, and its use in *Ever have I done ... makes it ungrammatical. Indeed, ever is a common specimen NPI, since any has another use, but ever doesn't occur outside a negative environment in the 21st century. Excluding consciously archaic language, of course, if thou canst. – John Lawler Dec 30 '21 at 17:52
1

@JohnLawler It turns out the OED just updated its entry for ever this very month (December 2021). Although it’s mostly now used as an NPI (incl. superlative&interrogative contexts), there are still several common positive uses like ever since, ever after, forever and ever. Most other positive uses get labelled regional, literary, rare, archaic, or obsolete. The ‘always’ sense is: “Now regional except (somewhat literary) with be and complement expressing habitual or typical characteristics: e.g. he was ever one to take risks.” – tchrist Dec 30 '21 at 18:41
@tchrist: Yup. Fixed phrases and archaic expressions. That's the place where old words go to die after they've evolved new roles. – John Lawler Dec 30 '21 at 21:47
I think you'll find I mentioned the word "poetic" a couple of times. It's also entirely possible that English English differs from American English. – Andrew Leach Dec 30 '21 at 21:49

BoldBen · Answer 2 · 2021-12-30T15:12:37.507

It is just about possible grammatically to say "Ever have I..." but it would not be normal English and would mean that you were in the habit of doing the thing, for instance "Ever have I brushed my teeth twice a day" would mean that your dental hygiene was good.

I think what you mean to say is "Never have I done anything wrong." which does mean what you want to say, is a bit more common but is still not really normal conversational English.

The most normal things to say would be "I have never done anything wrong" and "I have never been to that baseball academy."

score -3 · Answer 3 · answered Dec 30 '21 at 07:37

-3

It's certainly not standard usage or grammar. I think I can see it just about working as direct speech when the emphasis is on the word ever.

Have you considered trying:

Have I ever done something wrong in my life?

answered Dec 30 '21 at 07:37

Mozibur Ullah

407

Is it right to say “Ever have I done…?

3 Answers3