far
adverb /fɑː(r)/
/fɑːr/
(farther, farthest or further, furthest)
Idioms - a long distance away
- We didn't go far.
- Have you come far?
- It's not far to the beach.
- There's not far to go now.
- It's too far to walk.
- + adv./prep. The restaurant is not far from here.
- countries as far apart as Japan and Brazil
- He looked down at the traffic far below.
- Far away in the distance, a train whistled.
- The farther north they went, the colder it became.
- a concert of music from near and far
- (figurative) Legends are usually far removed from the reality.
- used when you are asking or talking about the distance between two places or the distance that has been travelled or is to be travelled
- How far is it to your house from here?
- How far is Boston from New York?
- How much further is it?
- I'm not sure I can walk so far.
- as far as somebody/something We'll go by train as far as London, and then take a bus.
- We didn't go as far as the others.
- a long time from the present; for a large part of a particular period of time
- far back The band had their first hit as far back as 2012.
- To answer that question we need to go further back in time.
- far ahead Let's try to plan further ahead.
- far into something We worked far into the night.
- The film takes place in a future not too far distant.
- very much; to a great degree
- That's a far better idea.
- The damage was far worse than I'd expected.
- a drug that gives heart attack victims a far greater chance of survival
- There are far more opportunities for young people than there used to be.
- She always gives us far too much homework.
- The results far exceeded my expectations.
- The benefits far outweigh the cost.
- The recent heat and continued drought further reduced yields.
- far beyond (something) It had been a success far beyond their expectations.
- far behind (something) He's fallen far behind in his work.
- used when you are asking or talking about the degree to which something is true or possible
- How far can we trust him?
- as far as… His parents supported him as far as they could.
- Plan your route in advance, using main roads as far as possible.
- used to talk about how much progress has been made in doing or achieving something
- How far have you got with that report?
- Half an hour later Duncan was no farther in his quest.
- as/so far as something I read as far as the third chapter.
- as/so far as doing something We’ve got as far as collecting our data but we haven’t analysed it yet.
distance
time
degree
progress
Word OriginOld English feorr, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch ver, from an Indo-European root shared by Sanskrit para and Greek pera ‘further’.
Idioms
as far as the eye can/could see
- to the horizon (= where the sky meets the land or sea)
- The bleak moorland stretched on all sides as far as the eye could see.
Which Word? farther / further / farthest / furthestfarther / further / farthest / furthest
- These are the comparative and superlative forms of far.
- To talk about distance, use either farther, farthest or further, furthest. In British English, further, furthest are the more common forms and in North American English, farther and farthest:
- I have to travel further/farther to work now.
- To talk about the degree or extent of something, further/furthest are usually preferred:
- Let’s consider this point further.
- Further, but not farther, can also mean ‘more’ or ‘additional’:
- Are there any further questions?
as/so far as I am concerned
- used to give your personal opinion on something
- As far as I am concerned, you can do what you like.
as far as I know | as far as I can remember, see, tell, etc.
- used to say that you think you know, remember, understand, etc. something but you cannot be completely sure, especially because you do not know all the facts
- As far as we knew, there was no cause for concern.
- As far as I can see, you've done nothing wrong.
- She lived in Chicago, as far as I can remember.
as/so far as somebody/something is concerned
(also as/so far as somebody/something goes)
- used to give facts or an opinion about a particular aspect of something
- She's doing fine as far as French is concerned, it's her German I'm worried about.
as/so far as it goes
- to a limited degree, usually less than is enough
- It's a good plan as far as it goes, but there are a lot of things they haven't thought of.
by far
- (used with comparative or superlative adjectives or adverbs) by a great amount
- The last of these reasons is by far the most important.
- Amy is the smartest by far.
carry/take something too far
- to continue doing something beyond reasonable limits
far/farther/further afield
- far away from home; to or in places that are not near
- You can hire a car if you want to explore further afield.
- Journalists came from as far afield as China.
far and away
- (followed by comparative or superlative adjectives) by a very great amount
- She's far and away the best player.
far and wide
- over a large area
- They searched far and wide for the missing child.
- People came from far and wide for the show.
far be it from me to do something (but…)
- (informal) used when you are just about to disagree with somebody or to criticize them and you would like them to think that you do not really want to do this
- Far be it from me to interfere in your affairs but I would like to give you just one piece of advice.
far from something/from doing something
- almost the opposite of something or of what is expected
- It is far from clear (= it is not clear) what he intends to do.
- Computers, far from destroying jobs, can create employment.
far from it
- (informal) used to say that the opposite of what somebody says is true
- ‘You're not angry then?’ ‘Far from it. I've never laughed so much in my life.’
few and far between
- not happening often
go far
- (of people) to be very successful in the future
- She is very talented and should go far.
go far enough
- (used in questions and negative sentences) to achieve all that is wanted
- The new legislation is welcome but does not go far enough.
- Do these measures go far enough?
- (disapproving) Stop it now. The joke has gone far enough (= it has continued too long).
go so/as far as to…
- to be willing to go to extreme or surprising limits in dealing with something
- I wouldn't go as far as to say that he's a liar (= but I think he may be slightly dishonest).
- In June 2009 he went so far as to offer his resignation.
go too far | go this/that far
- to behave in an extreme way that is not acceptable
- He's always been quite crude, but this time he's gone too far.
- I never thought she'd go this far.
in so/as far as
- to the degree that
- That's the truth, in so far as I know it.
not far off/out/wrong
- (informal) almost correct
- Your guess wasn't far out at all.
- They weren't far out with their estimate of 100 000.
- You're not far wrong when you say he's the richest guy in town.
not go far
- (of money) to not be enough to buy a lot of things
- Five pounds doesn't go very far these days.
- (of a supply of something) to not be enough for what is needed
- Four bottles of wine won't go far among twenty people.
so far
(also formal thus far)
- until now; up to this point
- What do you think of the show so far?
- Detectives are so far at a loss to explain the reason for his death.
so far
- (informal) only to a limited degree
- I trust him only so far.
so far, so good
- (saying) used to say that things have been successful until now and you hope that they will continue to be successful, but you know that the task, etc. is not finished yetTopics Successc2
so near and yet so far
- used to comment on something that was almost successful but in fact failedTopics Difficulty and failurec2