Maybe Never

There is a simple way of saying never in Italian: mai. But sometimes a situation calls for more creativity or nuance or even sarcasm. Some imaginative Italian phrases for expressing the concept "never" include: un domani (a tomorrow); ad ogni morte di papa (at every death of a pope)—meaning "very rarely" (or once in a blue moon); and alle calende greche. In the ancient Roman calendar the word calende referred to the first day of each month, so "on the first days of the Greek month" is a date that never existed. And don't forget that famous Italian holy day, Il giorno di San Mai (St. Never's Day)—which means that an event is never going to take place!