far

[ fahr ]
See synonyms for: farfartherfarthestfurther on Thesaurus.com

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

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

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

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

adjective,far·ther or fur·ther, far·thest or fur·thest.
  1. being at a great distance; remote in time or place: a far country;the far future.

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

  1. more distant of the two: the far side.

  2. having or representing extreme political views or beliefs: parties on the far left;the rise of the far right.

Idioms about far

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

  2. as far as. as1 (def. 18).

  1. by far,

    • by a great deal; very much: too expensive by far.

    • plainly; obviously: This melon is by far the ripest of the lot.

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

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. 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.

  6. few and far between. few (def. 5).

  7. 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.

  8. 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?

  9. on the far side of. side1 (def. 26).

  10. 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.

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

  12. the far side. side1 (def. 29).

  13. 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

1
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”

usage note For far

See as1, farther.

Other words from far

  • far·ness, noun
  • o·ver·far, adverb, adjective

Words that may be confused with far

Words Nearby far

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use far in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for far

far

/ (fɑː) /


adverbfarther, further, farthest or furthest
  1. at, to, or from a great distance

  2. at or to a remote time: far in the future

  1. to a considerable degree; very much: a far better plan

  2. as far as

    • to the degree or extent that

    • to the distance or place of

    • informal with reference to; as for

  3. by far by a considerable margin

  4. far and away by a very great margin

  5. far and wide over great distances; everywhere

  6. far be it from me I would not presume; on no account: far be it from me to tell you what to do

  7. far gone

    • in an advanced state of deterioration

    • informal extremely drunk

  8. go far

    • to be successful; achieve much: your son will go far

    • to be sufficient or last long: the wine didn't go far

  9. go too far to exceed reasonable limits

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

  11. in so far as to the degree or extent that

  12. so far

    • up to the present moment

    • up to a certain point, extent, degree, etc

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

adjective(prenominal)
  1. remote in space or time: a far country; in the far past

  2. extending a great distance; long

  1. more distant: the far end of the room

  2. a far cry

    • a long way

    • something very different

  3. far from in a degree, state, etc, remote from: he is far from happy

Origin of far

1
Old English feorr; related to Old Frisian fīr, Old High German ferro, Latin porro forwards, Greek pera further

Derived forms of far

  • farness, noun

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with far

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

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.