afar
adverb
from, at, or to a distance; far away (usually followed byoff ).
afar
1 American
[uh-fahr]
/ əˈfɑr /
adverb
idioms
Afar
2
American
[ah-fahr]
/ ˈɑ fɑr /
noun
-
Afars,
plural
-
Afara,
plural
-
Afar
plural
-
a member of a nomadic Muslim people living in Eritrea, Djibouti, and northern Ethiopia.
-
the Northern Cushitic language spoken by the Afars.
afar
British
/ əˈfɑː /
adverb
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of afar
1125–75; Middle English a fer, on ferr; replacing Old English feorran. See a- 1 (perhaps also a- 2 for the meaning “from”), far
Explanation
If something's off at a distance, you can describe it as being afar. You might write a letter to your pen pal in Japan, and say, "This note comes to you from afar." Afar is a poetic and old-fashioned way to say "far away" or "distant." If your summer visitors have traveled from afar, they've come a long way to see you, and if your boyfriend moves to Australia, you might have to continue your relationship from afar. The word is a shortened form of the Old English of feor, in which of means "of" or "on," and feor is "far, remote, or distant."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
I mean, I looked at him from afar.
From Salon ● Oct. 16, 2026
This was very frustrating to observe from afar.
From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2026
She added that the historic bridge could be enjoyed from afar and asked visitors to refrain from walking on the dried-up section of the reservoir.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
Three or four hours would slip by with her in a trancelike state, fingers sweeping across her phone screen as she consumed social media, following every Taliban edict and distress posting from afar.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
Maybe the damage wasn’t as bad as it looked from afar.
From "Time Bomb" by Joelle Charbonneau
The source estimated that at least 150,000 people have been displaced in Afar, but said it was impossible to give precise numbers.
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
A humanitarian source said the Afar town of Erebti, near the border with Tigray, fell to the rebels on Sunday after being pounded by heavy artillery.
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
The rebels also clashed with government troops in neighboring Afar, in the sharpest escalation of hostilities since the end of the devastating civil war.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
Umer, the cattle herder in Afar, said he was worried that an outbreak of disease could start killing his adult camels anytime now.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
Afar, in the silence of the night, he heard the faint clang of an ambulance-bell, and he began to think of the huge city now sunk in slumber all around him.
From Vistas of New York by Brander Matthews
Afara Lalaind, who filed her civil complaint Thursday at Stanley Mosk Courthouse in downtown L.A., also alleges her reputation “has been ruined” and her chance for advancement is gone.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2024
Signing up are the proud, aggressive Angelus Lipahi and the earnest, hardworking Ezekiel Afara, both inspired by glossy magazine images of surfing superstars.
From New York Times ● Feb. 3, 2012
Mengistu also faces the possibility of war with Somalia for control of the French Territory of the Afars and the Issas, whose 215,000 citizens last week voted for independence.*
From Time Magazine Archive
In the case of the Afars, for instance, he has asked the elders to designate which tribesmen should be armed.
From Time Magazine Archive
Neighboring Ethiopia, which contains large numbers of Afars, backs the tribe's cause in French Somaliland.
From Time Magazine Archive
Over the past few months, hostilities have raged between the Afars and Tigreans, the Gurages and Wolaytas, the Anuaks and Nuers, and the Oromos and Tigreans.
From Time Magazine Archive
A peace accord in 1994 ended a three-year uprising by Afars rebels.
From The 2001 CIA World Factbook by United States. Central Intelligence Agency
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
