Flannery O'Connor
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Nary, most often used in the phrase "nary a" to mean "not a single," is an 18th-century alteration of the adjectival phrase "ne'er a," in which ne'er is a contraction of never. That contraction dates to the 13th century, and the word it abbreviates is even older: never can be traced back to Old English nǣfre, a combination of ne ("not" or "no") and ǣfre ("ever"). Old English ne also combined with ā ("always") to give us nā, the Old English ancestor of our no. Ā, from the Latin aevum ("age" or "lifetime") and Greek aiōn ("age"), is related to the English adverb aye, meaning "always, continually, or ever." This aye (pronounced to rhyme with say) is unrelated to the more familiar aye (pronounced to rhyme with sigh) used as a synonym of yes.
Examples of nary in a Sentence
Chris Lee, Vulture, 25 Nov. 2024
Even though Georgia was not in the path of totality, the sun shined brightly and there was nary a cloud in the sky, making for ideal conditions for players and patrons alike to watch the course get cast in a dusk-like light.
—Dave Skretta, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Apr. 2024
More than 75,000 people attended, and there was nary a riot vibe to be found.
—Anita Chabria, Los Angeles Times, 31 Oct. 2024
Instead, the second episode of 9-1-1’s eighth season — the Empire Strikes Back chapter of the bee-nado — has nary a bee in sight.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Nary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nary. Accessed 15 Dec. 2024.
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