Farther vs Further: Which One Do You Need?
Farther is for physical distance. Further covers everything else — and distance too.
Two miles farther. No further questions.
The test that settles it
If you could measure it in metres, either word works. If you could not, only further does.
“walk a little ___” → measurable, so either, though farther is traditional.
“___ discussion is needed” → not measurable, so further.
Farther holds the word far, which is about distance.
Farther: physical distance
Used of measurable space. It is more common in American than British English, where further often covers both.
The village is farther up the valley.
He can throw farther than anyone.
They moved farther from the coast.
Could you measure it? Then farther is available.
Further: degree, extent, or additional
Used of anything abstract, and also as an adjective meaning additional and a verb meaning to advance.
We need to look further into it.
No further action is required.
The grant furthered her research.
Is it abstract, or does it mean additional? Then further.
Side by side
| Farther | Further |
|---|---|
| Physical distance only | Distance and everything else |
| Adverb | Adverb, adjective and verb |
| Contains far | Also means additional |
| Five miles farther | Further details |
The exceptions
You can further a cause or a career. There is no verb to farther.
In British English further is used freely for physical distance and sounds entirely natural: a bit further down the road.
American writing keeps the split more firmly. If you are writing for both, further is never wrong.
Where people get it wrong
| Incorrect | Correct | Why |
|---|---|---|
| no farther questions | no further questions | Additional, not distance. |
| to farther his career | to further his career | Only one of them is a verb. |
| farthermore | furthermore | The fixed word. |
| nothing could be farther from the truth | nothing could be further from the truth | Both appear, but further is now the usual form of the idiom. |
Practice — choose the right word, then check yourself.
- The shop is a little ___ along.
- We will need ___ information.
- She hopes to ___ her studies.
- He hit the ball ___ than the others.
- ___, the report is incomplete.
Show the answers
1. farther 2. further 3. further 4. farther 5. Furthermore
Frequently asked
Which is safer?
Further. It covers both senses, and no reader objects to it for distance.
Is the distinction old?
The two were interchangeable for centuries. The split is a nineteenth-century tidying-up that American usage adopted more firmly than British.
More words people confuse
