Farther vs. Further

[lazserus]

Farther is used when referencing physical distance. The root of the word is far, which is something to keep in mind when considering which word to use. "I followed the man farther down the street."

Further refers to metaphorical or figurative distance. You don't move further down the street, you move farther down it. All the while, you can further believe you are wasting your time moving down the street. Consider the following example of a child in the car with a parent.

Child: "How much farther do we have to go before we get there?"

Parent: "If you complain further I will turn this car around . . ."

While that explanation can take you far, some instances arise wherein the two can become somewhat confused, such as when reading a book. If you and a friend are reading the same book, do you tell them you are farther than them in it or further? The same rules apply but are not as obvious. Both can work in this situation but the usage depends on the meaning of what you convey. You are farther than your friend in the book, as in you've read ahead the physical pages, and you are further than your friend in the story because you've read farther ahead in the book.

Just remember that far refers to physical​ distance and is the root of farther, thus physical distance is implied. I will leave you to contemplate this further. :bye:

[phedrereine]

Good call bringing this up. It's a common mistake people make to confuse the two.

Also, your avatar is great.

[Cartesiantheater]

Honestly, I think this is yet another needless excess in our language. But ot is a common era ;) hahaha /intended grammatical irony.

[lazserus]

Honestly, I think this is yet another needless excess in our language. But ot is a common era ;) hahaha /intended grammatical irony.
You'd be amazed how much English has been simplified over just the last 200 years. Granted this tidbit seems useless to someone like you (a scientist), it actually matters in literary circles. As a historian I have to not only explain complex social systems of antiquity to people, I truly make my living from writing . . . and publishers still give a damn if you confuse it's and its, or there and their, and even sometimes further and farther. Because you're a scientist, you do not have to worry about language so much as others, unless of course you want to SHARE YOUR WORK!

Feynman and Hawking aren't considered geniuses based solely on their works in physics. They're classified as genius because they were both able to take the most complex ideas and use language, including the little things, to make the rest of us get it, understand it. I assure you even the littlest things make worlds of difference when it comes to language. Fortunately, Englis is more flexible than most if not all other languages, though it still functions based on rules. Some are absurd, most are not. In this instance, using further or farther, it seems superficially irrelevant in the long run. But once you start writing your dissertation and look at publishers, you'll realize you can't just slip by . . . at least not for free. Learn to write right or pay someone to fix your mistakes. And I can assure you that payment doesn't come cheap.

But, this particularly exercise isn't meant for the likes of you, my nerdy and critical friend. :angel:

And I will leave you with one last thought. Bestsellers aren't written by those who say "this is needless excess." Language is everything in the modern human word, whether spoken or written. :deal: