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far

Syllabification: (far)
Pronunciation: /fär/

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Definition of far

adverb (farther /ˈfärT͟Hər/, farthest /ˈfärT͟Həst/ or further /ˈfərT͟Hər/, furthest /ˈfərT͟Həst/)

  • 1 [often with adverbial] at, to, or by a great distance (used to indicate the extent to which one thing is distant from another):it was not too far away the mountains far in the distance glowed in the sun
  • 2over a large expanse of space or time:he had not traveled far figurativethat’s the reason why we have come so far and done as well as we have
  • 3by a great deal:he is able to function far better than usual the reality has fallen far short of early expectations

adjective

[attributive]
  • situated at a great distance in space or time:the far reaches of the universe
  • more distant than another object of the same kind:he was standing in the far corner
  • distant from a point seen as central; extreme:she was brought up in the far north of Scotland the largest electoral success for the far right since the war

Phrases

as far as

for as great a distance as:the river stretched away as far as he could see
for a great enough distance to reach:I decided to walk as far as the village
to the extent that:as far as I am concerned, it is no big deal

be a far cry from

be very different from:the hotel’s royal suite is a far cry from the poverty of his home country

by far

by a great amount:this was by far the largest city in the area

far and away

by a great amount:he is far and away the most accomplished player

far and near

(also near and far) everywhere:they came from far and near to New York City

far and wide

over a large area:the high plains where bison roamed far and wide

far be it from me to

used to express reluctance, especially to do something that one thinks may be resented:far be it from me to speculate on his reasons

far from

very different from being; tending to the opposite of:conditions were far from satisfactory

far gone

in a bad or worsening state, especially so as to be beyond recovery:a few frames from the original film were too far gone to salvage
advanced in time:the legislative session is too far gone for the lengthy hearings needed to pass the bill

go far

  • 1achieve a great deal:he was the bright one, and everyone was sure he would go far
  • 2contribute greatly:a book that goes far toward bridging the gap
  • 3be worth or amount to much:the money would not go far at this year’s prices

go so far as to do something

do something regarded as extreme:surely they wouldn’t go so far as to break in?

go too far

exceed the limits of what is reasonable or acceptable.

how far

  • 1used to ask how great a distance is:they wanted to know how far he could travel
  • 2to what extent:he was not sure how far she was committed

so far

  • 1to a certain limited extent:the commitment to free trade goes only so far
  • 2(of a trend that seems likely to continue) up to this time:we’ve only had one honest man so far

(in) so far as

to the extent that:it was a windless storm so far as blizzards go

so far, so good

progress has been satisfactory up to now:“How’s the job going?” “So far, so good.”

Origin:

Old English feorr; from an Indo-European root shared by Sanskrit para and Greek pera 'further'

far in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of far in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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