Farther vs. further

bloodywellwrite — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 19:47:45 +0000

A friend asked me to write about the difference between farther and further, and I had a hard time believing that I hadn’t already covered the subject. I combed the Bloody Well Write site and, lo and behold, nary a mention of the two existed. Voilà! A new entry is born.

It’s really quite simple.

I'd be willing to bet that this guy could run farther than I could (photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bossco/411695592)

Farther is literal. It refers to a physical distance: She ran farther than I did. New York City is farther from my home than is Chicago.
Further is figurative. It refers to an extension of time or degree: It will take further research. He looked further into the situation. Without further ado, yada yada yada.

Farther deals with what’s real, what’s quantifiable.
Further deals with what’s real, as well, but with what’s more abstract.

Farther is measured in inches or miles or whatever measuring system you prefer, whereas further is measured in concepts.

Let’s try using both in a single sentence: After further consideration, he decided that running two miles farther than his usual route was out of the question.

See? Easy-schmeezy.

Happy trails!

SAK

Bloody Well Write » further

Farther vs. further