far-fetched

American  

[fahr-fecht] / ˈfɑrˈfɛtʃt /

Or farfetched

adjective

1. improbable; not naturally pertinent; being only remotely connected; forced; strained.

   He brought in a far-fetched example in an effort to prove his point.

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far-fetched British  

adjective

1. improbable in nature; unlikely

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Other Word Forms

• far-fetchedness
  noun
• farfetchedness
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of far-fetched

First recorded in 1575–85

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Explanation

Something far-fetched is imaginative but very unlikely. It's a lot easier to think of than to do. Our brains can think of all sorts of ideas. Some are realistic, like going to the store or getting married. Others are far-fetched: A far-fetched idea or plan is implausible because there's very little chance it will happen. Flying to Jupiter is far-fetched. Marrying a movie star is a far-fetched idea, and so is becoming a movie star. Far-fetched things aren't necessarily impossible, but they're very unlikely. Children are especially good at coming up with far-fetched notions because of their powerful imaginations. Note that this word is sometimes unhyphenated as farfetched.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

far-fetched

Admissions officers described numerous times where a seemingly far-fetched application proved true, and awed them.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

Sure, some may call it crazy or far-fetched.

From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2026

"I think it is serious, but the Western expectation that Russians are going to just take down the regime is very far-fetched."

From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026

All of sudden fish and chips on the River Thames in London or a boat trip down the Seine don’t seem too far-fetched.

From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026

The possibility wasn’t so far-fetched, him being the supervising engineer of the project—the top guy in charge.

From "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen

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