Far describes a great distance in space or time. When your grandmother lives far away, she might be hundreds of miles from your house, requiring a long car ride or plane flight to visit. When something happened far in the past, like the reign of the Roman Empire, it occurred thousands of years ago.

The word tells you something is a great distance from a reference point. A destination can be far from where you are now. A deadline can be far in the future. Your goals might seem far from being achieved when you're just starting to work toward them.

Far often appears in comparisons. Your friend might live farther from school than you do, meaning the distance is greater. When you've practiced piano far more than your classmate, you've put in significantly more hours. Something far better is notably superior, showing a significant difference in quality.

The phrase so far means “up to this point,” as in “The experiment has worked well so far.” When something goes too far, it exceeds acceptable limits, like a joke that stops being funny and becomes hurtful.