How to say "ever" in Spanish?

Question

Just wondering how to say "ever " in Spanish. I have included some options and I don't know if all are correct or if they are all equally correct.

Example:

1. Han sido (fueron) de lejos las mejores vacaciones jamás.
2. Han sido de lejos las mejores vacaciones de mi vida.
3. .....de la historia.
4. .....que nunca.

Or are there better alternatives?

Answer 1

The examples in this answer are sorted from most common to least common. You can decide for yourself how far you want to go.

To convey the meaning of ever in affirmative sense¹ (as in "the best ever"), you can use "de mi/tu/su vida", which means "in my/your/his/her life":

Han sido de lejos las mejores vacaciones de mi vida

or "de la historia", which means "in history":

Han sido de lejos las mejores vacaciones de la historia

This last version is of course stronger, though it sounds a bit strange when talking about holidays, as holidays are an individual thing. It makes more sense when talking about public events:

• Fue el partido de fútbol más aburrido de la historia

but it is not wrong to use it in the "holiday" sentence for especially strong emphasis.

These are the most common alternatives. It is also possible to use "nunca" or "jamás" with this meaning, though they need to be accompanied by a verb. The phrase "que he visto nunca" is relatively common:

• Es la mejor serie que he visto nunca

or

• Es la mejor serie que he visto jamás

An even more poetic way of saying it is

• Es la mejor serie jamás creada

As far as I know, you cannot say

• Es la mejor serie nunca

because "nunca" with this meaning needs to be modifying a verb.

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_{¹I assume this question is only about affirmative sentences. To use "ever" in questions, as in "Have you ever...?", you usually say "alguna vez", as in "¿Has estado alguna vez en Japón?"}