Ne'er is a short, old-fashioned way of saying “never.” You might see it in poems, songs, or classic stories where the rhythm of the language matters. Instead of writing “never again,” a poet might write ne'er again because it fits the meter of the verse better.

The word appears most famously in the phrase ne'er-do-well, which describes someone who never does well at anything, who wastes their potential and doesn't accomplish much despite having opportunities. A ne'er-do-well might drift from job to job without sticking with anything, or make poor choices that keep getting them into trouble.

You'll rarely hear anyone say ne'er in regular conversation today. It belongs to an earlier time when people spoke and wrote more formally. But you'll still encounter it in old ballads, Shakespeare's plays, or poetry where writers wanted their words to have a certain sound or rhythm. Understanding ne'er helps you read these older texts and appreciate how English has changed over the centuries.