fan|zine /fæ nziːn/ (fanzines ) N‑COUNT A fanzine is a magazine for people who are fans of, for example, a particular pop group or football team. Fanzines are written by people who are fans themselves, rather than by professional journalists.
FAO You use FAO when addressing a letter or parcel to a particular person. FAO is a written abbreviation for 'for the attention of'. □ Send the coupon with your deposit to House Beautiful Weekend, FAO Heidi Ross.
FAQ /fæ k/ (FAQs ) N‑PLURAL FAQ is used especially on websites to refer to questions about computers and the internet. FAQ is an abbreviation for 'frequently asked questions'.
far ◆◆◆ /fɑː r / Far has two comparatives, farther and further , and two superlatives, farthest and furthest . Farther and farthest are used mainly in sense 1 , and are dealt with here. Further and furthest are dealt with in separate entries. 1 ADV [ADV after v, v-link ADV ] If one place, thing, or person is far away from another, there is a great distance between them. □ I know a nice little Italian restaurant not far from here. □ They came from as far away as Florida. □ Both of my sisters moved even farther away from home. □ They lay in the cliff top grass with the sea stretching out far below. □ Is it far?
2 ADV If you ask how far a place is, you are asking what distance it is from you or from another place. If you ask how far someone went, you are asking what distance they travelled, or what place they reached. □ How far is Pawtucket from Providence? □ How far is it to Malcy? □ How far can you throw? □ You can only judge how high something is when you know how far away it is. □ She followed the tracks as far as the road.
3 ADJ [ADJ n] When there are two things of the same kind in a place, the far one is the one that is a greater distance from you. □ He had wandered to the far end of the room.
4 ADJ [ADJ n] You can use far to refer to the part of an area or object that is the greatest distance from the centre in a particular direction. For example, the far north of a country is the part of it that is the greatest distance to the north. □ I wrote the date at the far left of the blackboard.
5 ADV [ADV after v, v-link ADV ] A time or event that is far away in the future or the past is a long time from the present or from a particular point in time. □ …hidden conflicts whose roots lie far back in time. □ I can't see any farther than the next six months. □ The first day of term, which seemed so far away at the start of the summer holidays, is looming.
6 ADV [ADV with v, usu how ADV ] You can use far to talk about the extent or degree to which something happens or is true. □ How far did the film tell the truth about the inventor?
7 ADV [ADV with v, oft how ADV ] You can talk about how far someone or something gets to describe the progress that they make. □ Discussions never progressed very far. □ Think of how far we have come in a little time. □ I don't think Mr Cavanagh would get far with that trick.
8 ADV [ADV with v] You can talk about how far a person or action goes to describe the degree to which someone's behaviour or actions are extreme. □ It's still not clear how far the government will go to implement its own plans. □ This time he's gone too far.
9 ADV You can use far to mean 'very much' when you are comparing two things and emphasizing the difference between them. For example, you can say that something is far better or far worse than something else to indicate that it is very much better or worse. You can also say that something is, for example, far too big to indicate that it is very much too big. [EMPHASIS ] □ Women who eat plenty of fresh vegetables are far less likely to suffer anxiety or depression. □ The police say the response has been far better than expected. □ These trials are simply taking far too long.
10 ADJ [ADJ n] You can describe people with extreme left-wing or right-wing political views as the far left or the far right. □ Anti-racist campaigners are urging the Government to ban all far-Right groups.
11 ADV You can use far in expressions like ' as far as I know ' and ' so far as I remember ' to indicate that you are not absolutely sure of the statement you are about to make or have just made, and you may be wrong. [VAGUENESS ] □ It only lasted a couple of years, as far as I know. □ So far as I am aware, no proper investigation has ever been carried out into the subject.
12 PHRASE You use the expression far and away when you are comparing something or someone with others of the same kind, in order to emphasize how great the difference is between them. For example, you can say that something is far and away the best to indicate that it is definitely the best. [EMPHASIS ] □ He's still far and away the best we have.
13 PHRASE You use the expression by far when you are comparing something or someone with others of the same kind, in order to emphasize how great the difference is between them. For example, you can say that something is by far the best or the best by far to indicate that it is definitely the best. [EMPHASIS ] □ By far the most important issue for them is unemployment. □ It was better by far to be clear-headed.
14 PHRASE If you say that something is far from a particular thing or far from being the case, you are emphasizing that it is not that particular thing or not at all the case, especially when people expect or assume that it is. [EMPHASIS ] □ It was obvious that much of what they recorded was far from the truth. □ Far from being relaxed, we both felt so uncomfortable we hardly spoke. □ It is still far from clear exactly what the Thais intend to do.