Using Never: I never eat breakfast. vs I never ate breakfast.

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

Hi

Which is correct ? why?

I never eat breakfast.

I never ate breakfast.

I never eat breakfast this morning.

I never ate breakfast this morning.

2

Hi Jen,

And welcome to english-test!

I never eat breakfast. I always have an early lunch break. - OK

I never ate breakfast (this morning) - you could say this after noon.

I[color=darkblue]'ve never eaten breakfast this morning - you could say this before noon.

I haven’t had (any/my) breakfast yet - is what you should say.

I never ate breakfast this morning - colloquially, you’d hear people say it.

Cheers,

Ralf

3

I can’t imagine ever saying that. Absolutely never ever! Oh, that sentence sounds just awful to me! :shock:
“I haven’t eaten breakfast this morning” would be OK. That sentence suggests that the morning is not yet over, and that the possibility of eating breakfast this morning might still exist. However, the combination (in the quote above) of the present perfect with the words ‘never’ and ‘this morning’ gives me a massive headache. :shock:

I would consider this sentence standard – not simply colloquial. To me, it basically suggests that I intended (or might have expected) to eat breakfast this morning, but I didn’t (for whatever reason), and there is no longer any possibility that I might be able to “eat breakfast this morning”. It doesn’t actually matter whether it’s after noon or not. All that matters is that the speaker sees “eat breakfast this morning” as an activity that is definitely no longer possible – i.e. the time when he/she might have been able to “eat breakfast this morning” is unquestionably past.

The use of ‘never+past verb form’ (never ate) rather than ‘did+not+base form of the verb’ (didn’t eat) is a standard, but slightly more emphatic way to negate a verb in the simple past tense.

The Cambridge Dictionary apparently agrees.
.

4

I think I would say:

  1. I never eat breakfast in the morning.
    — expresses a habit.

  2. I haven’t had any breakfast this morning.
    — fine before noon.

  3. I didn’t have any breakfast this morning.
    — fine all day; as Amy says, breakfast is now off the menu.

  4. I never had any breakfast this morning.
    — emphatic version of #3. You might say it to justify a very large lunch, for instance.

MrP

5

I’m after being shocked meself. Don’t be saying that!

In all fairness, sure me codswallap wordings be knocking in nails any place hither Ballyhillion and thither Ballynaul 8)

An dtuigeann tú?

6

Ní thuigim.

Abair go mall é, ma’s é do thoil é.

7

Ní hé lá na gaoithe lá na scolb. Oíche mhaith agus codladh sámh. :smiley:

mike.eire.ca/gaelige.html

digitaldialects.com/Irish.htm

8

Hi Ralf

So, are you saying that “I’ve never eaten breakfast this morning” would be a widely used sort of construction in Ireland? Is it considered to be “standard” Irish-English?

As you probably gathered from my last post, that sentence only sounds very wrong to me.
.

9

Hi Amy,

Since there is no standard Irish English, I’ll have to admit to having committed a usage blunder. I’ve never been meaning to be doing that type of thing, though.