far
Americanadverb
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at or to a great distance; a long way off; at or to a remote point.
We sailed far ahead of the fleet.
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at or to a remote or advanced time.
We talked far into the night.
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at or to a great, advanced, or definite point of progress, or degree.
Having come this far, we might as well continue.
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much or many.
I need far more time.
We gained far more advantages.
adjective
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being at a great distance; remote in time or place: the far future.
a far country;
the far future.
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extending to a great distance.
the far frontiers of empire.
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more distant of the two.
the far side.
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having or representing extreme political views or beliefs.
parties on the far left;
the rise of the far right.
idioms
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as far as. as.
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on the far side of. side.
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a far cry (from). cry.
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far be it from me, I do not wish or dare (to interrupt, criticize, etc.).
Far be it from me to complain, but it's getting stuffy in here.
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few and far between. few.
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so far,
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up to now.
So far, I've had no reply to my request.
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up to a certain point or extent.
We were able to plan only so far because of various factors beyond our control.
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far and away, by far; undoubtedly.
She is far and away the smartest one in the class.
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the far side. side.
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far out,
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His sense of humor is far out.
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political opinions that are far out.
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recondite or esoteric.
an interest in art that was considered far out.
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how far, to what distance, extent, or degree: How far do you think they can be trusted?
She didn't know how far they had gone in the mathematics text.
How far do you think they can be trusted?
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go far,
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to attain success.
With so much talent he should go far.
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to have a great effect toward; help.
The new evidence will go far toward proving the defendant's guilt.
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by far,
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by a great deal; very much.
too expensive by far.
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plainly; obviously.
This melon is by far the ripest of the lot.
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far and wide, to great lengths; over great distances: Also far and near, near and far.
He traveled far and wide in search of his missing son.
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thus far,
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up to the present; up to now.
We have met no resistance to our plan thus far.
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to a particular degree, point, or extent.
When you get thus far in the experiment, consult with the professor.
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so far so good, succeeding or managing adequately to this point; doing well thus far.
The work is difficult, but so far so good.
adverb
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at, to, or from a great distance
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at or to a remote time
far in the future
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to a considerable degree; very much
a far better plan
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to the degree or extent that
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to the distance or place of
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informal with reference to; as for
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by a considerable margin
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by a very great margin
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over great distances; everywhere
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I would not presume; on no account
far be it from me to tell you what to do
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in an advanced state of deterioration
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informal extremely drunk
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to be successful; achieve much
your son will go far
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to be sufficient or last long
the wine didn't go far
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to exceed reasonable limits
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to what extent, distance, or degree?
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to the degree or extent that
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up to the present moment
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up to a certain point, extent, degree, etc
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an expression of satisfaction with progress made
adjective
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remote in space or time
a far country
in the far past
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extending a great distance; long
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more distant
the far end of the room
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a long way
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something very different
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in a degree, state, etc, remote from
he is far from happy
Usage
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of far
First recorded before 900; Middle English far, fer, Old English feorr; cognate with Old High German ferr, Old Norse fjar, Gothic fairra; akin to German fern “far,” Latin porrō “forward, further,” Greek prós(s)ō, pórsō, pórrō “forward, onward”
Explanation
Use the adverb far to mean "distant," "remote," or "at a geat distance away." When you see a ship far out at sea, it's so remote from where you are that you might soon need binoculars to catch a glimpse of it. Far is used as both an adverb and an adjective, and it can mean both "distant in space," but also "distant in time," and "a lot." Therefore you can say, "Just look at us! We've come so far!" and also "You are far better at speaking French than I am." Old English had slightly different words for the adjective — feorr — and the adverb — feor.
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:
So when the “young upstart” Stewart comes around, “my character’s thought is, ‘I’m far wiser, I’m far smarter, I’m the only one who’s ever done this before.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
"It made a massive difference to my fielding as well. I just think it was a vital area of my career so far that I've improved on and it's made a massive difference."
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Some 90 people have so far been evacuated by sea, a coastguard spokesman told Greek broadcaster ERT.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
So far, Israel has treated Mr. al-Sharaa with skepticism.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
The wind made the sail go furiously: horse and knight were flung to the ground far afield.
From "Adventures of Don Quixote" by Argentina Palacios
The Bundibugyo variant replicates more slowly than other lethal strains, meaning it can spread farther and kill more people before burning out.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
There are some signs that the high pressure axis may shift farther north, across the northern UK.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
Some of the moon's water ice may be buried much farther below the surface.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 3, 2026
Silva worries, for example, about getting to a campus that is farther away.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Where was she taking me and how much farther was it?
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
Eala, 21, went the farthest any Filipina had gone in a Grand Slam event, reaching the fourth round and eliminating defending champion Iga Swiatek of Poland along the way.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
They were in Category 3, some of the farthest from the field in FIFA’s four-category system, and priced at $1,232 each.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026
Some of the smallest fragments, known as cryptotephra, travel the farthest distances.
From Science Daily ● May 11, 2026
Shortly after, the crew members will reach their farthest point from Earth at roughly 252,760 miles.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 6, 2026
After he had harvested the bits that were longest—and farthest away from her claws—Osh spent a moment plowing through her remaining fur, yanking ticks as he found them.
From "Beyond the Bright Sea" by Lauren Wolk
Analysts say the economy could cool during the July-September period as war-driven price hikes further squeeze household and corporate budgets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
Fernandez is, by nature, a defensive midfielder but Maresca played him further forward many times last season when Cole Palmer was injured, leading to him scoring a career-best 15 goals.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
Kanin’s attorneys argue the disbursement delay was caused by incomplete records and due diligence concerns — worries further snarled by the so-called slayer statute barring Californians from inheriting from people they have killed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
World oil demand could fall further than previously expected this year, according to the International Energy Agency.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 16, 2026
To further protest, the boy stopped turning in math assignments altogether.
From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman
But combining plenty of aerobic activity with one to two hours of strength training brought the risk down furthest of all – by around 45%.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 10, 2026
I argued in 2019 that one issue with AI is that its costs would settle on those furthest from the decision to deploy it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
Hardt reminds Klugo to go to parties and enjoy his high school experience, but it’s the furthest thing from Klugo’s mind.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026
The least-protected companies sit furthest from the data center, among them the makers of the cases, coolers, power supplies and memory modules sold almost entirely to people building their own machines.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 8, 2026
But prom\ That was the furthest thing from my mind.
From "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer
Definitions 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.
