I. so 1 S1 W1 /səʊ $ soʊ/ BrE AmE adverb
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: swa ]
1 .
a) [+adjective/adverb] used to emphasize how great a feeling or quality is, or how large an amount is:
It was so embarrassing!
Why didn’t you call? We were so worried.
I love her so much.
ever so British English :
They’re being ever so quiet.
b) [+adjective/adverb] as great, nice, many etc as this:
Why are you being so horrible to me?
I’ve never seen so many people here before!
How had they achieved it in so short a time?
c) [+adjective/adverb] used when emphasizing the degree or amount of something by saying what the result is
so ... (that)
He was so weak that he could hardly stand up.
There was so much smoke that they couldn’t see across the hallway.
Everything happened so quickly I hadn’t time to think.
so ... as to be
The particles are so small as to be almost invisible.
d) spoken old-fashioned used before or after a verb to emphasize that someone does something a lot or to a great degree:
I wish you wouldn’t fuss so (=as much as you do) . It makes me nervous.
He does so enjoy reading your letters.
e) spoken informal used before a noun phrase to emphasize what you are saying – used especially by young people:
He is just so not the right person for her.
GRAMMAR
Do not use so before an adjective and noun. Instead, it is usual to use such . Put such before 'a' if the noun is singular:
▪
Such a big increase (NOT A so big increase) in tax would be very damaging.
▪
a world in which such terrible things could not happen
In formal English, so and an adjective can be used before 'a' and a noun:
▪
He had never spoken to so large a crowd before.
REGISTER
In written English, people often prefer to use extremely rather than so to emphasize an adjective or adverb, because it sounds more formal:
▪
These schools are extremely difficult to get into.
2 . not so big/good/bad etc not very big, good etc:
I’m afraid the news is not so good.
Of course I’d like to help, but things aren’t so simple.
3 . [not used with negative verbs] used to add that what has just been said is also true about someone or something else
so do I/so is he/so would Peter etc
Joe was a little upset, and so was I.
He’s been ill, and so has his wife.
As the demand rises, so do prices.
4 . used to refer back to an idea, action, quality, situation etc that has just been mentioned
hope so/think so/say so etc
‘Will I need my umbrella?’ ‘I don’t think so.’
If you want to go home, just say so.
be more so/less so/too much so
The band is popular and likely to become more so.
Jerry is very honest, perhaps too much so.
The troops will not advance until ordered to do so.
Did Luke sell them? And, if so, what happened to the money?
‘Has he lost a fortune?’ ‘So they say.’
‘Look – I’ve even cleaned the windows.’ ‘So I see.’
Parents can withdraw their child from school if they so wish.
5 . be so to be true or correct:
‘It belongs to my father.’ ‘Is that so?’
Morton says his parents kicked him out, but his brothers say this isn’t so.
6 . ... or so used when you cannot be exact about a number, amount, or period of time and you think it may be a little more than the figure you are mentioning:
We have to leave in five minutes or so.
I stopped reading after thirty or so pages.
7 . spoken used to get someone’s attention, especially in order to ask them a question:
So, how was school today?
8 . spoken used to check that you have understood something:
So this is just a copy?
9 . spoken used when asking a question about what has just been said:
‘He’s going to Paris on business.’ ‘So when is he coming back?’
10 . be not so much ... as ... used to say that one description of someone or something is less suitable or correct than another:
The details are not so much wrong as they are incomplete.
11 . not/without so much as something used when you are surprised or annoyed that someone did not do something:
He left without so much as a goodbye.
12 . so long! American English spoken used to say goodbye
13 . not so ... as ... formal used in comparisons to say that something or someone has less of a particular quality than another person or thing:
The bed was not so comfortable as his own.
GRAMMAR
Do not use so in comparisons without 'not'. Use as :
▪
Your handwriting is as bad as mine (NOT so bad as mine).
14 . so much for somebody/something spoken used to say that a particular action, idea, statement etc was not useful or did not produce the result that was hoped for:
He’s late again. So much for good intentions!
15 . only so many/much used to say that there is only a limited quantity of something:
There’s only so much that anybody’s brain can handle at any one time.
There are only so many hours in the working day.
16 . spoken used with a movement of your hand to show how big, high etc something or someone is:
Oh, he’s about so tall, with brown hair and eyes.
17 . spoken used to show that you have found something out about someone:
So! You’ve got a new girlfriend?
18 . like so spoken used when you are showing someone how to do something:
Then turn the paper over and fold it, like so.
19 . and so on/forth used at the end of a list to show that you could continue it in a similar way:
You can do things for your health in the way of diet, exercise, good lifestyle, not smoking and so on.
20 . literary or formal in the way that is described:
Dorothy and Sarah continued to write to each other, and so began a lifelong friendship.
so ... that
The furniture is so arranged that the interviewee and the interviewer are not physically separated by a desk.
21 . and so and therefore:
Madeira has an ideal climate, and so it is not surprising that it has become a tourist paradise.
This was considered to be a religious issue and so to be a matter for the church courts.
22 . so she is/so there are etc especially British English spoken used to show that you agree with something that has just been mentioned, especially something that you had not noticed or had forgotten:
‘Look! She’s wearing a hat just like yours.’ ‘So she is.’
23 . be just/exactly so to be arranged tidily, with everything in the right place:
Everything had to be just so, or Edna would make us do it again.
24 . so be it spoken used to show you do not like or agree with something, but you will accept it:
If that means delaying the trip, so be it.
25 . spoken
a) used to say that a person’s behaviour or action is typical of that person:
‘He was about half an hour late.’ ‘That is just so Chris.’
b) used to say that something suits someone or is the type of thing they like:
You must buy that jacket – it’s so you!
26 . I do so/it is so etc American English spoken used especially by children to say that something is true, can be done etc when someone else says that it is not, cannot etc:
‘You can’t swim.’ ‘I can so.’
27 . spoken used to introduce the next part of a story you are telling someone:
So anyway, he goes in and his boots get stuck in the mud.
28 . so? ( also so what? ) spoken not polite used to tell someone that something does not matter:
So what if we’re a little late?
‘She might tell someone.’ ‘So? No one will believe her.’
⇨ ↑ so-so , ⇨ even so at ↑ even 1 (4), ⇨ so far at ↑ far 1 (7), ⇨ so far as I’m concerned at ↑ far 1 (14), ⇨ so far as something is concerned at ↑ far 1 (15), ⇨ so far as I know/I can remember/I can tell etc at ↑ far 1 (16), ⇨ as/so long as at ↑ long 2 (5), ⇨ so much the better at ↑ better 3 (4), ⇨ so to speak at ↑ speak (6)
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ therefore for this reason:
She already had a lot of experience and therefore seemed the best candidate for the job.
▪ so therefore. So is less formal than therefore , and is more common in everyday English:
They had not eaten all day, so they were very hungry.
▪ thus formal as a result of what you have just mentioned:
The program is very simple and thus easy to run.
▪ hence formal for this reason:
This material is highly poisonous, hence the importance of careful handling.
▪ as a result used when saying that because of a particular situation, something else happens or is true:
Some people suffer from stress at work and become ill as a result.
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Economic growth slowed down as a result of inflation.
▪ consequently/as a consequence used when saying that because of a particular situation, something else happens or is true. Consequently and as a consequence are more formal than as a result :
The disease attacks the plant, the flower does not open, and consequently no seeds are produced.
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As a consequence of global warming, our climate is already starting to change.
▪ this means that used when saying what the result of something is:
If students arrive late, this means that lesson time is wasted.
▪ for this reason used when explaining the reason for something:
Spell check programs do not recognize when you have used the wrong word. For this reason, you must still read over your work carefully.
II. so 2 S1 W3 BrE AmE conjunction
1 . used to say that someone does something because of the reason just stated:
I was feeling hungry, so I made myself a sandwich.
REGISTER
In written English, people often prefer to use therefore or consequently rather than so , because they sound more formal:
▪
She had previous experience, therefore she seemed the best candidate.
2 . so (that)
a) in order to make something happen, make something possible etc:
He lowered his voice so Doris couldn’t hear.
Why don’t you start out early so that you don’t have to hurry?
b) used to say that something happens or is true as a result of the situation you have just stated:
There are no buses, so you’ll have to walk.
The gravestones were covered with moss, so that it was impossible to read the names on them.
3 . so as to do something formal in order to do something:
I drove at a steady 50 mph so as to save fuel.
We went along silently on tiptoe so as not to disturb anyone.
4 . (just) as ..., so ... formal used to compare two people or things, when they are similar:
Just as the French love their wine, so the English love their beer.
III. so 3 BrE AmE noun [singular]
[ Date: 1800-1900 ; Origin: sol ]
the fifth note in a musical ↑ scale according to the ↑ sol-fa system