far

1 of 3

adverb

farther ˈfär-t͟hər How to pronounce far (audio) or further ˈfər-t͟hər How to pronounce far (audio) ; farthest or furthest ˈfər-t͟həst How to pronounce far (audio)
1
: at or to a considerable distance in space
wandered far from home
2
a
: to a great extent : much
far better methods
b
: by a broad interval : widely
the far distant future
3
: to or at a definite distance, point, or degree
as far as I know
4
: to an advanced point or extent
a bright student will go far
worked far into the night
5
: at a considerable distance in time
not far from the year 1870

far

2 of 3

adjective

farther or further; farthest or furthest
1
a
: remote in space
b
: distinctly different in quality or relationship
c
: remote in time
2
a
: long
a far journey
b
: of notable extent : comprehensive
a man of far vision
3
: the more distant of two
the far end
4
: extreme
the far left
a far right political organization

FAR

3 of 3

abbreviation

federal air regulation
Phrases
by far
: far and away
is by far the best runner
far be it from
: it would be inappropriate or impossible for
far be it from me to complain
far from
: of a distinctly different and especially opposite quality than
the trip was far from a failure
how far
: to what extent, degree, or distance
didn't know how far to trust them
so far
1
: to a certain extent, degree, or distance
when the water rose so far, we fled
2
: up to the present
has written one novel so far
thus far
: so far
thus far the results are negative

Examples of far in a Sentence

Adverb The dog wandered far from home. These new discoveries will allow us to see far into the past. She lives far out in the country. The house is set far back from the road. The deadline is not far off. regions far to the north a town not far from Chicago He still lives not far from where he was born. The car is far too expensive. His policies are far different from those of his predecessor. Adjective the far corners of the world the far reaches of outer space
Recent Examples on the Web
Adverb
From the beginning, the proposal identified two potential sites far from the urban core — property near Brown Field on Otay Mesa and another at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Mar. 2024 So far only Waymo has been approved by regulators to offer taxi service in Los Angeles, but more driverless cars are certainly coming. Rachel Uranga, Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2024 The resulting civilian casualties are far higher, too. Francesca Ebel, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024 The department is working with 5.7 million applications that are in so far, but more than 10 million additional ones are expected to roll in as students make their way through the process, which is still not functioning without delays. Zach Montague, New York Times, 14 Mar. 2024 Walton already showed signs of turning activist while West was far from a social crusader, a role on the Lakers that belonged to forward Elgin Baylor, who had greater self-confidence and a life of growing up black in inner-city Washington. Scott Howard-Cooper., Los Angeles Times, 3 Mar. 2024 His sidelining demonstrates the extent to which Khamenei and his clique have tightened their grip on the reins of power and further dispensed with the trappings of democracy for which the regime often congratulates itself. Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 3 Mar. 2024 Strong winds helped the fire pick up, and the passage of a windy cold front whipped it up further, causing the fire to shift direction and expand. Laura Paddison, CNN, 3 Mar. 2024 Other incumbents plagued by convention weakness Carter was far from being the first incumbent to lose reelection after a rocky re-nomination convention. Ron Elving, NPR, 3 Mar. 2024
Adjective
That’s a third of the total national count and far outpaces second-place New York. Francine Kiefer, The Christian Science Monitor, 1 Mar. 2024 The outcome of the case could set a precedent for exactly how far billionaires and tech companies can go to silence their critics. Vittoria Elliott, WIRED, 1 Mar. 2024 Contrary to the myth that all the newspaper magnates of the 1980s and 1990s thought the good times would last forever, quite a few saw trouble lurking in the far distance. David Streitfeld, New York Times, 28 Feb. 2024 The top of the baseball mountain is familiar yet far territory for the Royals. Scott Sandulli, Kansas City Star, 28 Feb. 2024 Jorge Calles stands near the far edge of the dusty hilltop field with a group of older residents, looking down across the lower part of town. Whitney Eulich, The Christian Science Monitor, 14 Feb. 2024 Head further into the mountains to check out towns like Glenwood Springs, Telluride, and Durango, all located in the state's far west. Jill Krasny, Travel + Leisure, 10 Dec. 2023 But the author also contextualizes this period of the 19th century, tracing the elements of women’s clothing from the cotton plantations in the southern U.S. to the far reaches of the British colonial empire. Beth Py-Lieberman, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Nov. 2023 Dolce Zel took the lead coming out of the far turn and finished three-quarters of a length ahead of Yerwanthere, who had Umberto Rispoli aboard. Bill Center, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Nov. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'far.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adverb

Middle English fer, from Old English feorr; akin to Old High German ferro far, Old English faran to go — more at fare

First Known Use

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of far was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near far

Cite this Entry

“Far.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/far. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

far

1 of 2 adverb
farther -t͟hər How to pronounce far (audio) or further ˈfər- How to pronounce far (audio) ; farthest or furthest -t͟həst How to pronounce far (audio)
1
: at or to a great distance in space or time
far from home
2
: to a great extent : much
far better
3
: to or at a definite distance, point, or degree
as far as I know
4
: to an advanced point or extent : a long way
a smart student can go far

far

2 of 2 adjective
farther or further; farthest or furthest
1
: very distant in space or time
2
: long entry 1 sense 3
a far journey
3
: the more distant of two
the far side of the lake

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