Here are 10 ways ‘far’ is used ranked by order of frequency:
1. A2 general adverb
*Numbers on the right are the frequency in iWeb corpus:
(RR) 1578722
‘far‘ means ‘at, to or from a great distance in space or time‘ For example:
2. B1 phrase
‘so far‘ means ‘until now‘
3. B2 adverb of degree:
‘far + comparative‘ means ‘very much‘
(RG) 571418
- I’d far rather go to the United States.
- I’d far sooner visit India.
- Your English is far better.
- It cost far more.
- He drinks far too often.
4. B2 complex subordinating conjunction
(CS32) 498039
- As far as I know, he’s never been in trouble with the police. (you think something is true, but cannot be sure)
- It’s all over as far as I’m concerned. (someone’s opinion)
5. B2 adjective + noun
meaning ‘distant’
(JJ) 184065
- His office is at the far end of the corridor.
6. B2 adverb phrase
by a great amount
(RR22) 177881
- They are by far the best explanations.
7. C1 Adverb phrase of degree + adjective
(RG21) 61815
- It was far from clear.
8. ‘Adjective phrase + noun‘ or ‘locative adverb‘
‘far off’ ‘far-off’ (unlisted in the English Vocabulary Profile means these are very rare!)
Adjective meaning: remote in time or space.
A far-off planet.
(JJ21) 21441
He went far off the topic.
(RL) 2966
9. C2 complex subordinating conjunction
‘insofar as’ means ‘to the extent that’
(CS43) 11667
Throughout, Machiavelli appears entirely unconcerned with morality, except insofar as it’s helpful or harmful to maintaining power.
10. Adverb phrase
The phrase ‘far and away’ means ‘by a very large amount’.
(RR42) 1674
It is, by far and away, the largest print library in the world.