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have never been to vs never went

hirashin

Sempai
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8 Apr 2004
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Would you help, me?

Do both (a) and (b) mean the same?
(a) I have never been to China.
(b) I never went to China.

How about (c)? Can it have the same meaning as (a) or (b)?
(c) I haven't been to China.

I think (d) would be almost the same as (a). Am I right?
(d) I haven't ever been to China.

Hirashin
 
They mean the same to a certain extent. Let me clear something up for you, so that you can give the most accurate response.

"I have never been to China" is a declaration. For example, in a conversation, your friends may be talking about where they have gone.
Example:
Friend a) "I have never been to France"
Friend b) "I have never been to Italy"
You) "I have never been to China"

It is more of a statement. You CAN say that as a response to a question, but the second sentence "I never went to China" is mostly used as a response and a confirmation.
Friend a) "You went to China last summer, right?"
You: "I never went to China."

"I haven't been to China" Can also be a response if you never did go to China. For example:
Friend a) "You went to China last summer, right?"
You: "I haven't been to China"

English can be confusing. According to the textbooks, 'haven't been' is used in the sense of "I have never been there in my life." But, you can also use it as a time span.

Friend a) "You went to China last summer, right?"
You) "I haven't been to China in 5 years."

Also, there is an error in "I haven't ever been to China." You would correctly say: "I have not been to China" or "I have never been to China". Both mean the same in the sense of 'I have never set foot in China' UNLESS you add a time marker.

Hope this helps. if you need clarification please ask.
 
Tricky subject!
A and B are practically saying the same, but there are slight differences when used in a conversation, as the Captain said. An obvious difference is that in sentence A the verb "to be" is used, in B the verb "to go".
D is saying the same as A but in a stronger way, as in: "I haven't ever been to China and I never will."
That's the thing with languages, there are slightly different ways to say the same thing with generally the same meaning. The sentence: "I never went to China." could mean that the person had the intention to go to China but for some reason it never happened. Like: "I went to Japan, Korea and Taiwan several times but I never went to China."
Most native speakers don't concentrate on correct grammar in a conversation, they even may use wrong grammar, it is more about the meaning and the context.
For example the Captain used "You went to China last summer, right?" which I would also use in a conversation assuming that the person went, but if you want to use perfect grammar you would use "Did you go to China last summer?" or "Didn't you say that you went to China last summer?"
Feel free to point out any "mistakes" I made! :)
 
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