מעולם לא ראיתי משחק כזה.

not

Breakdown of מעולם לא ראיתי משחק כזה.

• לראות: to see
• משחק: game
• כזה: such

Questions & Answers about מעולם לא ראיתי משחק כזה.

What does מעולם לא mean here, and why not just use לא?

לא by itself just means not.
מעולם לא is a stronger expression meaning never or not ever.

So:

• לא ראיתי = I didn’t see / I have not seen
• מעולם לא ראיתי = I have never seen

A good way to think of מעולם לא is as a fixed expression meaning never in this kind of sentence.

What is the literal meaning of מעולם?

Literally, מעולם comes from עולם, which can mean world or, in some contexts, eternity / long duration. In modern Hebrew, מעולם לא functions as an idiomatic expression meaning never.

So even if the literal pieces seem unusual, learners should usually memorize מעולם לא as one unit:

• מעולם לא... = never...

What tense is ראיתי?