I. ˈsō, especially before adj or adv followed by “that” sə adverb
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English swā; akin to Old High German sō so, Latin sic so, thus, si if, Greek hōs so, thus, Latin suus one's own — more at suicide
Date: before 12th century
1.
a. : in a manner or way indicated or suggested
do you really think so
— often used as a substitute for a preceding clause
are you ready? I think so
I didn't like it and I told her so
b. : in the same manner or way : also
worked hard and so did she
c. : thus 1
for so the Lord said — Isaiah 18:4 (Authorized Version)
d. : then , subsequently
and so home and to bed
2.
a. : to an indicated or suggested extent or degree
had never been so happy
b. : to a great extent or degree : very , extremely
loves her so
c. : to a definite but unspecified extent or degree
can only do so much in a day
d. : most certainly : indeed
you did so do it
e. : most decidedly : surely
I so don't believe you
3. : therefore , consequently
the witness is biased and so unreliable
Usage:
The intensive use of so (sense 2b) is widely condemned in college handbooks but is nonetheless standard
why is American television so shallow? — Anthony Lewis
the cephalopod eye is an example of a remarkable evolutionary parallel because it is so like the eye of a vertebrate — Sarah F. Robbins
the kind of sterile over-ingenuity which afflicts so many academic efforts — Times Literary Supplement
There is no stigma attached to its use in negative contexts and when qualified by a dependent clause
not so long ago
was so good in mathematics that he began to consider engineering — Current Biography
The denotation in these uses is, of course, slightly different (see sense 2a). Another emphatic use of so (sense 2e) has developed more recently and occurs mostly in informal contexts.
II. conjunction
Date: before 12th century
1.
a. : with the result that
the acoustics are good, so every note is clear
b. : in order that
be quiet so he can sleep
2. archaic : provided that
3.
a. : for that reason : therefore
don't want to go, so I won't
b.
(1) — used as an introductory particle
so here we are
often to belittle a point under discussion
so what?
(2) — used interjectionally to indicate awareness of a discovery
so , that's who did it
or surprised dissent
•
- so as to
Usage:
Although occasionally condemned, use of so to introduce clauses of result (sense 1a) and purpose (sense 1b) is standard. In sense 1b so that is more common in formal contexts than so alone.
III. adjective
Date: before 12th century
1. : conforming with actual facts : true
said things that were not so
2. : marked by a desired order
his books are always just so
3. — used to replace a preceding adjective
was witty by adult standards and of course doubly so by mine — Sally Kempton
IV. pronoun
Date: before 12th century
1. : such as has been specified or suggested : the same
if you have to file a claim, do so as soon as possible
2. — used in the phrase or so to indicate an estimate, approximation, or conjecture
stayed a week or so
cost $15 or so
V.
variant of sol
VI. abbreviation
south; southern