far

[ fahr ]

/ fɑr /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR far ON THESAURUS.COM

adverb

at or to a great distance; a long way off; at or to a remote point: We sailed far ahead of the fleet.

at or to a remote or advanced time: We talked far into the night.

at or to a great, advanced, or definite point of progress, or degree: Having come this far, we might as well continue.

much or many: I need far more time. We gained far more advantages.

adjective, far·ther or fur·ther, far·thest or fur·thest.

being at a great distance; remote in time or place: a far country; the far future.

extending to a great distance: the far frontiers of empire.

more distant of the two: the far side.

Nearby words

fanzine, fao, faq, faqih, faqir, far, far afield, far and away, far and near, far and wide, far be it from one to

Idioms

a far cry (from). cry(def 27).

as far as. as¹(def 18).

by far,

by a great deal; very much: too expensive by far.
plainly; obviously: This melon is by far the ripest of the lot.

far and away, by far; undoubtedly: She is far and away the smartest one in the class.

far and wide, to great lengths; over great distances: He traveled far and wide in search of his missing son.Also far and near, near and far.

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.

far out, Slang.

unconventional; offbeat: His sense of humor is far out.
radical; extreme: political opinions that are far out.
recondite or esoteric: an interest in art that was considered far out.

few and far between. few(def 5).

go far,

to attain success: With so much talent he should go far.
to have a great effect toward; help: The new evidence will go far toward proving the defendant's guilt.

how far, to what distance, extent, or degree: She didn't know how far they had gone in the mathematics text. How far do you think they can be trusted?

on the far side of. side¹(def 26).

so far,

up to now: So far, I've had no reply to my request.
up to a certain point or extent: We were able to plan only so far because of various factors beyond our control.

so far so good, succeeding or managing adequately to this point; doing well thus far: The work is difficult, but so far so good.

the far side. side¹(def 29).

thus far,

up to the present; up to now: We have met no resistance to our plan thus far.
to a particular degree, point, or extent: When you get thus far in the experiment, consult with the professor.

Origin of far

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

Related forms

far·ness, nouno·ver·far, adverb, adjective

Can be confused

fair far fare

Usage note

See as¹, farther.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for far and near

far

/ (fɑː) /

adverb farther, further, farthest or furthest

at, to, or from a great distance

at or to a remote timefar in the future

to a considerable degree; very mucha far better plan

as far as

to the degree or extent that
to the distance or place of
informal with reference to; as for

by far by a considerable margin

far and away by a very great margin

far and wide over great distances; everywhere

far be it from me I would not presume; on no accountfar be it from me to tell you what to do

far gone

in an advanced state of deterioration
informal extremely drunk

go far

to be successful; achieve muchyour son will go far
to be sufficient or last longthe wine didn't go far

go too far to exceed reasonable limits

how far? to what extent, distance, or degree?

in so far as to the degree or extent that

so far

up to the present moment
up to a certain point, extent, degree, etc

so far, so good an expression of satisfaction with progress made

adjective (prenominal)

remote in space or timea far country; in the far past

extending a great distance; long

more distantthe far end of the room

a far cry

a long way
something very different

far from in a degree, state, etc, remote fromhe is far from happy

Derived Forms

farness, noun

Word Origin for far

Old English feorr; related to Old Frisian fīr, Old High German ferro, Latin porro forwards, Greek pera further

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Idioms and Phrases with far and near (1 of 2)

far and near

Everywhere, at a distance and nearby. For example, People came from far and near to see the Pope. [c. a.d. 1000]

Idioms and Phrases with far and near (2 of 2)

far

In addition to the idioms beginning with far

far afield
far and away
far and near
far and wide
far be it from one to
far cry from, a
far from
far gone
far out

also see:

as far as
as far as possible
as far as that goes
by far
carry too far
few and far between
go far
go so far as to
go too far
so far
so far so good

far