nary

American  

[nair-ee] / ˈnɛər i /

adjective

Older Use.

1. not any; no; never a.

   nary a sound.

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nary British  

/ ˈnɛərɪ /

adverb

1. dialect not; never

   nary a man was left

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Etymology

Origin of nary

First recorded in 1740–50; variant of ne'er a never a

Example Sentences

This is how I pictured Indianapolis, this crush of humankind with nary a familiar face.

From Literature

By the time we covered the walls and windows of the Clark Street room with dark fabrics and draperies, nary a ray of sunlight could penetrate inside.

From Literature

Madame Pernelle, too, worships at the shrine of Tartuffe, but has nary a good word, and many a bad one, for anyone else.

From The Wall Street Journal

Her production of “Ragtime,” with its sumptuous score by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, had nary a weak link in a cast of characters among the most expansive in the recent annals of musicals.

From The Wall Street Journal

Cassiopeia proved it by using her fingers to do sums on her abacus, and flicked the beads up and down with nary a wince.

From Literature