Grammar Moses: Why ‘Farther’ Takes a Ruler and ‘Further’ an Imagination
•November 16, 2022•
By Jim Baumann
NP Guest Writer
The headline read: “In the suburban counties, the blue wave spread further.”
I had anticipated getting a phone call or two from readers who interpreted the headline as rubbing their noses in Tuesday’s results. That would have been a stretch, mind you, but emotions run high this time of year.
However, I hadn’t anticipated anyone asking me about word choice in this way: “If we’re talking distance, shouldn’t this be ‘farther,’ not ‘further’?” Tom Petersen wrote.
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