Farther

Question

When should i use farther and when should i use further

Trellis · Accepted Answer

It is usually best to use "farther" for distances, and "further" for time or other non-physical spans.

Memory trick:

farther - more far
fUrther - fUture

farther (fär´ther) Usage Problem. adverb
A comparative of far
1. To or at a more distant or remote point: ran farther than the others.
2. To or at a more advanced point or stage: I went no farther that day.
3. To a greater extent or degree: carried the idea farther.

adjective
A comparative of far
More distant; remoter: the farther shore.
[Middle English, variant (influenced by far, far). See FAR, of further. See FURTHER.]

further (fûr´ther) adjective
A comparative of far
1. More distant in degree, time, or space: a result that was further from our expectations than last time; the further lamppost.
2. Additional: a further example; a further delay.

adverb
A comparative of far
1. To a greater extent; more: considered further the consequences of her actions.
2. In addition; furthermore: He stated further that he would not cooperate with the committee.
3. At or to a more distant or advanced point: went only three miles further; reading five pages further tonight. See Usage Note at FARTHER.

verb, transitive
furthered, furthering, furthers
To help the progress of; advance. See synonyms at ADVANCE.
[Middle English, from Old English furthra, from furthor, farther. Adv., from Middle English, from Old English furthor.]
- fur´therer noun

Usage Note: Farther and further have been used interchangeably by many writers since the Middle English period. According to a rule of relatively recent origin, however, farther should be reserved for physical distance and further for advancement along a nonphysical dimension. Thus 74 percent of the Usage Panel prefers farther in the sentence If you are planning to drive any farther than Ukiah, you'd better carry chains; whereas 64 percent prefers further in the sentence We won't be able to answer these questions until we are further along in our research. In many cases, however, the distinction is not easy to draw. If we may speak metaphorically of a statement that is far from the truth, for example, the analogous use of farther should be allowed in a sentence such as Nothing could be farther from the truth, though Nothing could be further from the truth is also justifiable.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition copyright © 1992 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Electronic version licensed from InfoSoft International, Inc. All rights reserved.

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