distant
Americanadjective
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far off or apart in space; not near at hand; remote or removed (often followed byfrom ).
a distant place; a town three miles distant from here.
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apart or far off in time.
distant centuries past.
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remote or far apart in any respect.
a distant relative.
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reserved or aloof; not familiar or cordial.
a distant greeting.
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arriving from or going to a distance, as a communication, journey, etc..
I have here a distant letter from Japan.
adjective
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far away or apart in space or time
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(postpositive) separated in space or time by a specified distance
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apart in relevance, association, or relationship
a distant cousin
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coming from or going to a faraway place
a distant journey
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remote in manner; aloof
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abstracted; absent
a distant look
Other Word Forms
- distantly adverb
- distantness noun
- overdistant adjective
- overdistantly adverb
- quasi-distant adjective
- quasi-distantly adverb
- ultradistant adjective
- undistant adjective
- undistantly adverb
Etymology
Origin of distant
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English dista(u)nt, from Anglo-French, from Latin distant-, stem of distāns “standing apart,” present participle of distāre “to stand apart,” from di- di- 2 + stāre “to stand”; stand
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.
The bits of eggshell floated within the circle, shining like distant stars.
From Literature
Another taxi driver, who gave the name Steve, claimed firms would purposely increase the mileage on trips by dispatching drivers to another distant town to carry out short journeys.
From BBC
Bravery was now a distant shore across a dark and stormy sea.
From Literature
Matthew claimed he was a family friend through one of his uncles—or might even be a distant relative; he himself wasn’t quite clear on the details.
From Literature
As digital natives, we’ve grown up knowing the internet can be dangerous, yet this danger has always felt distant—something that happened to other people.
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.
