far be it
A disclaimer stating that something should not come to pass, or that a person would never do or think a certain thing.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Far be it from me to tell you how to live.”
“Far be it from him to complain about a free meal.”
“Far be it from her to judge how you spend your money.”
“Far be it from me to criticize your cooking, but the soup needs a little more salt.”
“Far be it from us to interfere with your wedding plans, but have you considered the weather in October?”
“Far be it from me to suggest you are wrong, but the data in this report looks a bit unusual.”
“Far be it from the manager to discourage your creativity, but we must follow the safety guidelines exactly as they are written in the handbook.”
“Far be it from me to question the wisdom of the board, yet I must point out the risks in this new strategy.”
Calque of Latin absit ("may it be away"), found in the Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible as part of the phrase absit hoc a me ("may this [thing] be away from me") at 1 Samuel 2:30, 1 Samuel 22:15 and 2 Samuel 20:20. Wyclif translated the phrase "Fer be this fro me"; the King James Version at 2 Samuel 20:20 has "Far be it from me".
- 01
a bridge too far
A step or action that is too ambitious; an act of overreaching.
- 02
as far as one knows
To the best of one's knowledge, as far as someone knows or possible information to be gathered about the topic, subject, aspect, or situation.
- 03
far and away
By a large degree or margin; greatly (used before comparative and superlative adjectives).
- 04
far cry
A long distance, in terms of dissimilarity or difference.
- 05
far post
The goalpost furthest from where a cross is made.
- 06
few and far between
Rare and scarce; hard to find.
- 07
go far
To attain success, especially from humble origins; achieve a great deal.
- 08
go so far as
To reach an unexpected extent in doing something.
Last updated August 10, 2026