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There are two options for saying the word “far” in Spanish. If you’re using it as an adverb, meaning far in distance, you would use lejos. Other times, if you’re using it as an adjective, you would use lejano or lejana. You can even use the prepositional phrase lejos de (far from) when giving directions or descriptions of relative locations.
Learning the various ways to say “far” in Spanish is easiest when you see examples of how to use it in everyday situations, so you don’t get stuck thinking of which way to say “far” or whether to use ser vs. estar in your sentences. This guide will show many examples of each form so it’s far easier to remember.
How to say ‘far’ in Spanish
Consider for instance a conversation you might have when traveling with or meeting a friend at the airport. In addition to some Spanish phrases for travel, you might need to ask about the location and distance of the terminal and gate for your flight.
- ¿Dónde estás? Ya estamos en la puerta. = Where are you? We’re already at the gate.
- ¿La puerta está lejos? = Is the gate far away?
- Es una puerta lejana, pero no está muy lejos. = It’s a distant gate, but it’s not very far.
- Ah, sí, pero está bastante lejos de la terminal donde entramos. = Oh, yes, but it’s quite far from the terminal where we entered.
Lejos
The adverb lejos doesn’t have any other forms. Spanish adverbs like lejos for “far away” in Spanish and cerca (close by) are useful when you’re talking about distances to your next travel destinations. As you plan your itinerary, consider some of the expressions you might hear or use in a taxi or ride-share.
- ¿Qué tan lejos estamos de la Ciudad de México? = How far are we from Mexico City?
- Necesito un coche porque vivo lejos de aquí. = I need a car because I live far from here.
- No te preocupes, está justo para allá. No está lejos. = Don’t worry, it’s just over there. It’s not far.
Lejos de
Perhaps you’re welcoming someone to your city or giving advice in Spanish about weekend accommodations. You may want to describe the relative positions of two things or places, in which case you’ll need to include de (from) to say “far from” in Spanish. To make your Spanish even more correct, adjust as needed if the Spanish definite article that follows is masculine singular, since de and el (the) contract to form del (from the).
- Mi casa está lejos de la biblioteca. = My house is far from the library.
- El hotel está lejos del metro. = The hotel is far from the subway.
- La piscina no está lejos de las habitaciones. = The pool isn’t far from the rooms.
- La ubicación es buena porque no estamos lejos del aeropuerto. = The location is good, because we aren’t far from the airport.
The examples above also demonstrate how to use the conjugation of estar (to be) when discussing relative positions and locations.
Lejano/lejana
This adjective means “far” or “distant.” An adjective modifies or describes a noun, and according to Spanish grammar rules, needs to match the gender and number of that noun. This is why you’ll see the endings of Spanish adjectives like lejano change depending on the sentence.
- China está en el lejano oriente. = China is in the Far East.
- Tenemos parientes lejanos en el sur de Texas. = We have distant relatives in the South of Texas.
- En un futuro no muy lejano, los taxis no tendrán conductores. = In the not very distant future, taxis won’t have drivers.
- Descubrieron una galaxia muy lejana. = They discovered a distant galaxy.
Other expressions using ‘far’ in Spanish
Now that you have the more literal translations of “far,” you can ask “how far” in Spanish. Now take it to the next level and make note of all the times you will encounter “far” in everyday expressions. These examples can help you add helpful phrases like “as far as I know” or “so far” in Spanish. You’ll impress the native speakers with these phrases.
| Spanish | English Meaning | Spanish Example | English Example |
| a lo lejos | far off | Vi la ciudad a lo lejos. | I saw the city from far off. |
| ¿A qué distancia…?¿Qué tan lejos…? | How far…? | ¿A qué distancia está la oficina? | How far is the office? |
| de lejos/por mucho | by far | Es de lejos lo más rápido. | It’s by far the fastest. |
| disparatado/disparatada | far-fetched | La película era un poco disparatada para mí. | The film was a bit far-fetched for me. |
| hasta ahora | so far | Hasta ahora no he podido terminar de leer uno de sus artículos. | So far I haven’t been able to finish reading one of his articles. |
| hasta donde yo sé/por lo que yo sé | as far as I know | Hasta donde yo sé, la reunión sigue sin cancelarse. | As far as I know, the meeting hasn’t been canceled. |
| hipermétrope | farsighted | Soy hipermétrope así que uso gafas. | I’m farsighted, so I wear glasses. |
| llegar lejos | to go far/to be successful | Con tanto talento, vas a llegar lejos. | With so much talent, you’ll go far. |
| mucho más/menos | far more/less | Soy mucho más creativa que ella. | I’m far more creative than her. |
| no tiene nada que ver con | it has nothing to do with/it’s a far cry from | Su vida ahora no tiene nada que ver con su niñez. | Her life now is a far cry from her childhood. |
| por ahora todo bien | So far so good. | ¿El nuevo trabajo? Por ahora todo bien. | The new job? So far so good. |
| por todos lados | far and wide | Busqué por todos lados el lugar perfecto para la boda. | I looked far and wide for the perfect place for the wedding. |
Key takeaways about ‘far’ in Spanish
There are often multiple ways to translate English words in Spanish. It’s helpful to understand a bit about parts of speech to choose correctly, but learning Spanish words in context with Rosetta Stone makes the process mucho más fácil (far easier).
- Lejos will combine with verbs like in the examples vivo lejos (I live far) or está lejos (it’s far).
- The phrase lejos de helps to compare two locations, like la casa está lejos de la ciudad (the house is far from the city).
- Lejano/lejana modify nouns and can translate as “distant,” such as parientes lejanos (distant relatives).
- Many Spanish expressions like hasta donde yo sé (as far as I know) translate “far” in Spanish in a variety of ways.
