far/distand relatives

[na_jovemsantista]

Hi! I'm doing an exercise in which I'm supposed to choose the correct word that goes better with another. The sentence is: I've got some distant/far relatives in Autralia, but I've never met them.
I thought you could use both, but apparently only one is correct. Which one is it?

 

[Keith Bradford]

Give us your answer first, it's the rule.

 

[na_jovemsantista]

I would say a far relative.

 

[parliamentary zooming]

It is "distant relative."

 

[Egmont]

"Distant relative" is a set phrase to describe someone whose family connection is only from several generations in the past. It cannot be replaced by another group of words, even if their ordinary meaning is the same.

The phrase "distant relatives" has nothing to do with geographic distance. The fact that these relatives were in Australia, far from your home and mine, does not change it. I can have distant relatives who live in the house next to mine.

 

[na_jovemsantista]

Thank you for your answer. From what you said, I imply that "far relative" doesn't exist, or is not usually used. Is that correct?

 

[parliamentary zooming]

yes, that's right. If you were talking about relatives who live far away from you, you could say "far-away relatives" but not "far relatives."