Further or Farther: a specific question?

Question

In most sentences we know to use "farther" when we are refering to distance, almost always physical distance. Likewise, we are taugh to use "further" when "one 'furthers' his/her education"--something not physical in nature. Here's my specific example where I am confused: I mix hawaiian punch flaver with cherry or strawberry and the kids never notice. I said to my husband I wanted to make the Kool-aid "go farther" but then I realized I was not refering to distance. I am going with "farther" because it makes more Kool-aid which goes farther with the kids. What do you think? Thanks, Robin

Answer 1

farther / further
Is it the further you get in your trip, the farther you get in your book or the other way around? Many writers since the Middle English period have used farther and further interchangeably. A relatively recent rule, however, states that farther should be reserved for physical distance and further for nonphysical, metaphorical advancement. Thus 74 percent of the Usage Panel prefers farther in the sentence If you are planning to drive any farther than Ukiah, you’d better carry chains, whereas 64 percent prefers further in the sentence We won’t be able to answer these questions until we are further along in our research. In many cases, however, it is hard to see the difference. If we speak of a statement that is far from the truth, for example, we should also allow the use of farther in a sentence such as Nothing could be farther from the truth. But Nothing could be further from the truth is so common that it has become a fixed expression.

Answer 2

I don't get why you think 'farther' works in this sentence. It isn't going a distance, it makes a greater amount, and lasts a longer time, fills a greater number of kids. None of these are distance.

Hence, it goes further.

(Oh, dear, now 'farther' is not looking like a word to me at all; it looks like a mis-spelling of 'father'.)

Answer 3

Farther - as you said, denotes distance. Further means " in addition to'. 'Further' to my above answer, I wish, not to go 'farther'. Hope, you are clear, now.

Answer 4

Hi. Per dictionary.com the words are interchangeable.

Answer 5

you use further because you just do

Answer 6

i think you should use further