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The phrase never-never land is linked to Peter Pan, although it did not originate with that creation of the Scottish playwright Sir James Matthew Barrie. In Barrie's original 1904 play, Peter befriends the real-world children of the Darling family and spirits them off for a visit to Never Land, where children can fly and never have to become adults. Then, in his 1908 sequel When Wendy Grew Up, Barrie changed the name to Never Never Land, and subsequent versions of the earlier play incorporated that change. People had been using never-never land for a place that was overly idealistic or romantic since at least 1900, but the influence of Peter Pan on the word's popularity and staying power cannot be discounted.

Examples of never-never land in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Every chapter straddles the psychological never-never land between myth and science. — Robert M. Thorson, WSJ, 4 Mar. 2022 Ownership of both is a must for the haves and a never-never land for the have-nots. — Scott Burns, Dallas News, 9 Oct. 2020 Of course, this abject failure is nothing new in the never-never land of presidential debates. — Washington Post, 24 Sep. 2020 But for ten days every June, when the Aspen Ideas Festival is in full swing, a technicolour fever dream descends and the campus becomes a corporate never-never land. — The Economist, 11 Oct. 2019 Off to never-never land: Thousands drive, bike, walk and board packed trains to Metallica concert at Chase Center. — Taylor Kate Brown, SFChronicle.com, 9 Sep. 2019 Its occasional bombshell scoops reside in a never-never land between rumor and accepted fact. — Jonathan Chait, Daily Intelligencer, 16 May 2018 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'never-never land.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries Near never-never land

never-never

never-never land

never/not dream of

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Cite this Entry

“Never-never land.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/never-never%20land. Accessed 10 Aug. 2022.

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