This is another clashing grammar point in the English Grammar Profile and therefore not really useful to expand. It would be better if it listed which tenses/aspects it is associated with.
B1 point 11 in the category of NEGATION is defined:
adverbs: ‘ever’, ‘never’, ‘yet’, ‘still’ in negative contexts.
Let’s look at the English Grammar Profile examples to see if we can work out a better definition:
Even though this B1 point lists an example of present perfect negative with ‘yet’:
- I haven’t decided yet. (present perfect simple + ‘yet’ is also listed at A2 in the EGP.)
- Nobody will ever know who that man was. (future with ‘nobody’)
The adverb of frequency ‘never’ is listed at A2.
‘still’ is listed at b2 with the present perfect negative.
An iWeb search for:
nobody ever * * *
1 NOBODY EVER GOT FIRED FOR 56
A catchphrase in the industry: Nobody ever got fired for buying IBM.
2 NOBODY EVER TALKS ABOUT THE 35
3 NOBODY EVER SAID IT WAS 31
4 NOBODY EVER SAID ANYTHING ABOUT 27
5 NOBODY EVER TOLD ME THAT 27
_XX * * * ever
1 N’T THINK I’VE EVER 4979
I don’t think I’ve ever done this. (B1 negation mental process verbs)
2 N’T THINK I’LL EVER 1554
3 N’T THINK I HAVE EVER 1244
4 N’T THINK I WILL EVER 775
5 N’T THINK I’D EVER 666
6 N’T SAY I’VE EVER 522
I didn’t say I’ve ever done that.
1 N’T THINK I EVER 1921
2 N’T WANT TO EVER 582
3 NOT THAT I EVER 572
Not that I ever did it much previously,
but I highly doubt I’ll ever eat at a buffet again.
EXPERT EXAMPLE:
He called the English judges as Mr so-and-so,
and none of them ever objected
that the young man wasn’t upholding the dignity of the court.
*B2 negation is caught here first.