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I am having difficulty finding an authoritative source that can provide the distinction between these two words.
Is there a difference?
There are times when intuitively, one seems a better choice.
"The farther I reach the further away the item drifts".
But, I cannot provide a real REASON behind this instinct.
Anyone have more details?
"I am certain there is too much certainty in the world" -Michael Crichton
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Quote:
I am having difficulty finding an authoritative source that can provide the distinction between these two words.
Is there a difference?
There are times when intuitively, one seems a better choice.
"The farther I reach the further away the item drifts".
But, I cannot provide a real REASON behind this instinct.
Anyone have more details?
The details are abstract.
Take Little Willie John for example. He sang...
Further on up the road
When I'm all alone and blue
Like you mistreated somebody
Someone's gonna mistreat you.
So you see "further", is not normanlly used as a particular for "farther" , but it is most time used as adverb to denote a distance or time in the abstract.
The reason?
A distinction was needed when referring to a hypothetical and folks like Little Willie John know best.
EDIT:Also, what tsuwm said.
Last edited by themilum; 12/03/06 05:59 PM.
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Also, the former word is holy, since many Christians begin their prayer:
Our farther, which art in heaven. . . ..
You NEVER hear of that for further.
TEd
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I dunno. Billy Graham used to pray to "ow fatha."
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Quote:
Also, the former word is holy, since many Christians begin their prayer:
Our farther, which art in heaven. . . ..
You NEVER hear of that for further.
Yes, and God's name is Howard because that prayer continues,
"..Howard be thy name..."
"I am certain there is too much certainty in the world" -Michael Crichton
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And all these years I thought it was "Hollow Ed"!
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Yer both wrong. It's Harold.
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As in "Hark, the harold angels sing..."?
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Quote:
distance vs. extent, degree
Nice basic language information Tsuwm and lo! an obvious link!
Especially with Themilum's exemplary and charming songlines.
Asked or not asked for my opinion, I simply appreciate this.
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Quote:
Nice basic language information Tsuwm and lo! an obvious link!
Especially with Themilum's exemplary and charming songlines.
Asked or not asked for my opinion, I simply appreciate this.
Curses, BranShea, it beaks my jaw to admit that TEd Remmington is right.
The creation of "further" by the polentariat was to further distinguish "farther" from "father". Today I remembered a time when I was a 10 year old barefoot boy with the heart of an angel who heard this song and thought that they wee singing "Father alone" rather than "Farther along". I thought the singer was singing so sadly because his mother had died.
Opening by Willie Nelson... http://gbgm-umc.org/music/gp/music/FartherAlong/15fartheralong.mp3
Farther along we'll know all about it
Farther along we'll understand why
Cheer up my darling, live in the sunshine
Well understand it all by and by.
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Quote:
Curses, BranShea.
 Church songs have caused many funny misunderstandings: (I try to translate) A prayer song to God:
"Open Thy mouth,
Demand from me candidly" etc.
"Opent Uwe mond.
Eist van mij vrijmoedig" etc.
"Eist" sounds the same as "ijs", meaning ice cream.
I never knew up to I guess my 8-th what God was meaning there.
I only connected the open mouth with the ice cream.
I guess an english speaking child could interprete the line as God demanding to be offered candy.
(nice song!- ZM)
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So, is it safe to assume that this same 'history' applies to FARTHEST and FURTHEST ?
"I am certain there is too much certainty in the world" -Michael Crichton
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Quote:
So, is it safe to assume that this same 'history' applies to FARTHEST and FURTHEST ?
Not to mention FARTH and FURTH.
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Let's just leave thothe two out of thith dithcuthion.
TEd
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Far out! and fur out!? ;~) maybe they should be in the out of fashion word thread.
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Frank: It isn't right for a college to buy football players.
Wagstaff: It isn't, eh? Well, I'll nip that in the bud. How about coming along and having a nip yourself?
Frank: Anything further, Father?
Wagstaff: Anything further, Father? That can't be right. Isn't it 'Anything Father, further?' The idea! I married your mother because I wanted children. Imagine my disappointment when you arrived.
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I've checked with some profs at English departments at Duke and the Univ. of N.C> and they tell me there is no difference in their uses any more. It used to be that "further" meant distance and "farther" implied a more abstract meaning of depth or degree (as in "The professor went farther into existentialism than I thought he would").
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