ever
1.for ever（永久地）和forever相同。在英国通常作for ever，在美国通常作forever。
有人说for ever是“永久”或“终身”，forever是“时常”，如I shall love my work for ever里用for ever，但You are forever asking silly questions（你老是提愚蠢的问题）里用forever。但事实上没有这区别。关于第二句，参见always 1, 2, 3
2.下面各句里的ever都作always解，除了在有“过去这样，现在这样，将来还是这样”的意思的场合以外，现在不很普通：
- Honesty ever pays.
- I have ever been of opinion that honesty pays.
- Shakespeare will ever be regarded as a great poet.
- Helen is ever complaining of something or other.
3.ever用在过去时态或完成时态的疑问句里都可以，如Did you ever see such a grand parade? 和Have you ever seen such a grand parade? 都可以说。但第一句情感多于理智，往往用作修辞疑问句，如假使是真的提问（要对方回答），通常说Have you ever seen such a grand parade? 但假使含有“你当然不曾见过”的意思，只可说Did you ever see such a grand parade? Did you ever? 是习语，作“你曾经见过或听到过这种事吗”解，含有“你当然不曾”的意思，是用以表示惊奇的。
4.下面每组里的两句意思相同：
- I intend him to do it at once.
I intend that he shal!(不用 will) do it at once. - I intend that he do(不用 does) it at once.
I intended him to do it at once. - I intended that he should(不用would) do it at once.
I intended that he do(不用did) it at once.
似乎用过去时态比用完成时态普通些。注意best属于最高级，不可改作good或better。
上面四句里的is假使改作了was，那heard或have heard不用改，改作had heard也可以，但不很普通。
5.下面各句里的ever都是用来加重语气的：
- What ever do you want? Who ever wants this?
- Which ever do you mean? When ever will he start?
- Where ever does she live? Why ever are you laughing?
- How ever has he done it?
这样用法的ever，只用在疑问句里，主要是英国口语。注意what ever, who ever等不该写作whatever, whoever等。
上面所举各例句里的what, who等词都跟ever相连，但偶尔也有不相连的。例如：What do you ever want?
下面每句可能有两个不同的意思：
What do you ever want? （1.你到底要什么？2.你可能在任何时候要什么？）
Who ever wants this? （1.到底谁要这个？2.谁在任何时候会要这个？）
6.下面两句都可以说，第一句普通些：
- I do not remember ever having seen him before.
- I do not remember having ever seen him before.
也可以说I do not remember ever to have seen him before，但似乎不说I do not remember to have ever seen him before。
7.下面两句都可以说，似乎第一句普通些：
- I do not seem ever to have seen him before.
- I do not seem to have ever seen him before.
8.下面两句都可以说，第一句比第二句合理：
- Do you expect（或hope，或intend）ever to see him again?
- Do you ever expect（或hope，或intend）to see him again?
9.This is the most terrible storm ever和These children are the most inquisitive ever等句子里的ever等于that ever was（或were），是口语用法。
10.下面两句都可以说，第一句只用在英国：
- We must work as hard as ever we can.
- We must work as hard as we ever can.
11.seldom if ever是习语，直译作“难得地，假使在任何时候地”，就是“难得地”或“绝无仅有”的意思。例如：She seldom if ever goes to the pictures. 注意seldom if ever和seldom or never意思相同，不可把两种表达方式混用而用seldom if never或seldom or ever。
12.Yours ever（或Ever yours）用作知己朋友之间的信函里的信尾客套语。
13.Don't ever do it是口语，在文字里该作Never do it。Not having seen him ever, I did not know who he was里的Not having seen him ever也是口语，最好改作Never having seen him。
14.not...for ever并不等于never，如I shall not do it for ever是“我将并不永远做它”。I shall never do it是“我将永远不做它”。
15.ever so（很）很普通，如I am ever so delighted to see you和We live ever so quietly。偶尔也有ever such。例如：Your brother and I used to be ever such chums.
