1 far away in space or time:
the distant sound of music * distant stars / planets * The time we spent together is now a distant memory. * (formal) The airport was about 20 kilometres distant. * a star 30000 light years distant from the Earth * (figurative) Peace was just a distant hope (= not very likely).
2 ~ (from sth) not like sth else:
Their life seemed utterly distant from his own.
3 [onlybeforenoun] (of a person) related to you but not closely:
a distant cousin / aunt / relative
4 not friendly; not wanting a close relationship with sb:
Pat sounded very cold and distant on the phone. * He became emotionally distant from his friends and family after the illness.
5 not paying attention to sth but thinking about sth completely different:
There was a distant look in her eyes, her mind was obviously on something else.
distantly adverb:
Somewhere, distantly, he could hear the sound of the sea. * We're distantly related. * Holly smiled distantly.
IDIOMS
the (dim and) distant past a long time ago:
stories from the distant past * In the distant past this land was covered in forests.
in the not too distant future not a long time in the future but fairly soon:
I hope we'll see each other again in the not too distant future.
