Dear friends, please tell me what on Earth "Well I never" might mean. It is supposed to be a colloquial expression. I've run into it in a book translated from French. Is it but an unfortunate translation?
Thank you,
Vera
Thank you,
Vera
"Well I never" meaning
It is an expression of surprise or curiosity.
The word "well" by itself can express surprise, usually followed by an exclamation mark when in print: "Well!". It can also express indignation or contemplation; the different meanings are conveyed by pronunciation or intonation.
The "I never" (which sometimes is expressed as "I never did" is a short form of "I never did hear of such a thing before", which of course emphasises the rarity of the event. Both these expressions are a little "old-fashioned" or out-of-date; you probably would only hear older people using it.
So together, "well I never..." could be surprise (usually) or indignation, and sometimes a combination of surprise and curiosity.
Difficult to describe enunciation in writing, but I'll give it a try:
for indignation: short clipped sounds (like a cross parent)
for surprise: up and down changes of tone (like an excited child)
for curiosity: slow and drawn out, fading towards the end.
The word "well" by itself can express surprise, usually followed by an exclamation mark when in print: "Well!". It can also express indignation or contemplation; the different meanings are conveyed by pronunciation or intonation.
The "I never" (which sometimes is expressed as "I never did" is a short form of "I never did hear of such a thing before", which of course emphasises the rarity of the event. Both these expressions are a little "old-fashioned" or out-of-date; you probably would only hear older people using it.
So together, "well I never..." could be surprise (usually) or indignation, and sometimes a combination of surprise and curiosity.
Difficult to describe enunciation in writing, but I'll give it a try:
for indignation: short clipped sounds (like a cross parent)
for surprise: up and down changes of tone (like an excited child)
for curiosity: slow and drawn out, fading towards the end.