never mind

idiomatic phrase

1

—used to tell someone not to be concerned about or give attention to something or someone

Never mind your mistake: it wasn't serious.

So you made a little mistake! Never mind (about that): it wasn't serious.

'Well, it is a little awkward, for I have a business already,' said I. 'Oh, never mind about that, Mr. Wilson!' said Vincent Spaulding. 'I should be able to look after that for you.'

—Arthur Conan Doyle

He would tell Blossom that she might go back to her aunt and never mind about him—he would do very well by himself and he did not blame her in the least.

—Lucy Maud Montgomery

2

—used to say that something previously mentioned or asked can be disregarded

Do you know where my keys are? Oh, never mind. Here they are.

3

—used to refer to something that is even less likely or possible than something else being mentioned or described

I can barely understand it, never mind explain it.

With this knee I can hardly walk, never mind run.

Never mind mastering a second language or a subject syllabus, most us have enough difficulty remembering the orders for a round of drinks at the pub.

—David Robson

Synonyms

• let alone
• much less
• still less

Examples of never mind in a Sentence

I have a hard enough time getting out of bed before sunrise, never mind getting to work so early.

Recent Examples on the Web

Geek culture alone, never mind humble comic books and their community of fans, isn’t enough to power these massive commercial extravaganzas and bring in the kind of crowds that fill both of Seattle’s convention centers for a four-day bash. —Rob Salkowitz, Forbes, 6 Mar. 2025

Trump and many of his allies hold that the United States has no real national interest at stake in Ukraine and wasted tens of billions of dollars arming it — never mind that American weapons manufacturers received most of the money. —Neil MacFarquhar, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2025

Many of those who lost their homes to the storms are likely struggling to rebuild their properties, never mind building them back bigger and stronger to mitigate future risks. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 12 Feb. 2025

But the reality is that with more than 10,000 structures gone, replacing even a fraction of them will tax our government’s ability to keep up, never mind do better. —Anita Chabria, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1677, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for never mind

• countersigned
• disinclined
• humankind
• interlined
• intertwined
• mastermind
• misaligned
• nonaligned
• predefined
• realigned
• reassigned
• recombined