so
English
Etymology 1
From Middle English so, swo, zuo, swa, swe, from Old English swā, swǣ, swē (“so, as, the same, such, that”), from Proto-Germanic *swa, *swē (“so”), from Proto-Indo-European *swē, *swō (reflexive pronomial stem). Cognate with Scots sae (“so”), West Frisian sa (“so”), Low German so (“so”), Dutch zo (“so”), German so (“so”), Danish så (“so”), Norwegian Nynorsk so, Swedish så ("so, such that"), Old Latin suad (“so”), Albanian sa (“how much, so, as”), Ancient Greek ὡς (hōs, “as”).
Pronunciation
Conjunction
so
- In order that.
- Eat your broccoli so you can have dessert.
- With the result that; for that reason; therefore.
- 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 1, in Mr. Pratt's Patients:
- Thinks I to myself, “Sol, you're run off your course again. This is a rich man's summer ‘cottage’ […].” So I started to back away again into the bushes. But I hadn't backed more'n a couple of yards when I see something so amazing that I couldn't help scooching down behind the bayberries and looking at it.
- I was hungry so I asked if there was any more food.
- He ate too much cake, so he fell ill.
- He wanted a book, so he went to the library.
- “I need to go to the bathroom.”
―“So go!”
-
- (archaic) Provided that; on condition that, as long as.
- 1594, William Shakespeare, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Act III, Scene 1,
- Speed. ‘Item: She doth talk in her sleep.’
- Launce. It’s no matter for that, so she sleep not in her talk.
- 1603, John Florio, transl.; Michel de Montaigne, chapter 18, in The Essayes, […], book II, printed at London: By Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], OCLC 946730821:
- As we cal money not onely that which is true and good, but also the false; so it be currant.
- 1644, John Milton, Areopagitica, London, p. 35,
- […] though all the windes of doctrin were let loose play upon the earth, so Truth be in the field, we do injuriously by licencing and prohibiting to misdoubt her strength.
- 1743, Robert Drury, The Pleasant, and Surprizing Adventures of Mr. Robert Drury, during his Fifteen Years Captivity on the Island of Madagascar, London, p. 111,
- I went away very well satisfy’d, not caring where I was sent, so it was but out of his Sight; for he now became more my Aversion than ever.
- 1594, William Shakespeare, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Act III, Scene 1,
Usage notes
Chiefly in North American use, a comma or pause is often used before the conjunction when used in the sense with the result that. (A similar meaning can often be achieved by using a semicolon or colon (without the so), as for example: He drank the poison; he died.)
Translations
|
|
|
|
Adverb
so (not comparable)
- To the (explicitly stated) extent that.
- It was so hot outside that all the plants died. He was so good, they hired him on the spot.
- 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 1, in Mr. Pratt's Patients:
- Thinks I to myself, “Sol, you're run off your course again. This is a rich man's summer ‘cottage’ […].” So I started to back away again into the bushes. But I hadn't backed more'n a couple of yards when I see something so amazing that I couldn't help scooching down behind the bayberries and looking at it.
- 2013 July 20, “Old soldiers?”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845:
- Whether modern, industrial man is less or more warlike than his hunter-gatherer ancestors is impossible to determine. The machine gun is so much more lethal than the bow and arrow that comparisons are meaningless.
- (informal) To the (implied) extent.
- I need a piece of cloth so long. [= this long]
- 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 2, in The Celebrity:
- We drove back to the office with some concern on my part at the prospect of so large a case. Sunning himself on the board steps, I saw for the first time Mr. Farquhar Fenelon Cooke.
- (informal) Very (positive clause).
- He is so good!
- 1910, Emerson Hough, chapter I, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, OCLC 639762314, page 0105:
- Captain Edward Carlisle […] felt a curious sensation of helplessness seize upon him as he met her steady gaze, […]; he could not tell what this prisoner might do. He cursed the fate which had assigned such a duty, cursed especially that fate which forced a gallant soldier to meet so superb a woman as this under handicap so hard.
- (informal) Very (negative clause).
- It’s not so bad. [i.e. it's acceptable]
- (slang, chiefly US) Very much.
- But I so want to see the Queen when she visits our town! That is so not true!
- 1879, R[ichard] J[efferies], chapter 1, in The Amateur Poacher, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., […], OCLC 752825175, page 062:
- Molly the dairymaid came a little way from the rickyard, and said she would pluck the pigeon that very night after work. She was always ready to do anything for us boys; and we could never quite make out why they scolded her so for an idle hussy indoors. It seemed so unjust.
- 1963, Mike Hawker, Ivor Raymonde (music and lyrics), Dusty Springfield (vocalist), I Only Want to Be with You (single),
- Don′t know what it is that makes me love you so, / I only know I never want to let you go.
- 2003 April 16, Andrea Taylor as Clover, “I, Dude”, in Totally Spies!, season 2, episode 9, written by Michael Stokes, Teletoon, Marathon Media:
- Yeah! Not eating is so 90’s!
- In a particular manner.
- Place the napkin on the table just so. If that's what you mean, then say so; (or do so).
- In the same manner or to the same extent as aforementioned; also.
- Just as you have the right to your free speech, so I have the right to mine. Many people say she's the world's greatest athlete, but I don't think so. "I can count backwards from one hundred." "So can I."
- 1883, Howard Pyle, The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood Chapter V
- "Good morrow to thee, jolly fellow," quoth Robin, "thou seemest happy this merry morn." ¶ "Ay, that am I," quoth the jolly Butcher, "and why should I not be so? Am I not hale in wind and limb? Have I not the bonniest lass in all Nottinghamshire? And lastly, am I not to be married to her on Thursday next in sweet Locksley Town?"
- 2012 May 19, Paul Fletcher, “Blackpool 1-2 West Ham”, in BBC Sport:
- It was a goal that meant West Ham won on their first appearance at Wembley in 31 years, in doing so becoming the first team since Leicester in 1996 to bounce straight back to the Premier League through the play-offs.
- (with as): To such an extent or degree; as.
- so far as; so long as; so much as
Usage notes
- Use of so in the sense to the implied extent is discouraged in formal writing; spoken intonation which might render the usage clearer is not usually apparent to the reader, who might reasonably expect the extent to be made explicit. For example, the reader may expect He is so good to be followed by an explanation or consequence of how good he is. Devices such as use of underscoring and the exclamation mark may be used as a means of clarifying that the implicit usage is intended; capitalising SO is also used. The derivative subsenses very and very much are similarly more apparent with spoken exaggerated intonation.
- The difference between so and very in implied-extent usage is that very is more descriptive or matter-of-fact, while so indicates more emotional involvement. For example, she is very clever is a simple statement of opinion; she is so clever suggests admiration. Likewise, that is very typical is a simple statement; that is SO typical of him! is an indictment. A formal (and reserved) apology may be expressed I am very sorry, but after elbowing someone in the nose during a basketball game, a man might say, Dude, I am so sorry! in order to ensure that it's understood as an accident.[1]
Synonyms
Translations
|
|
|
|
|
|
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
References
- Mark Liberman, "Ask Language Log: So feminine?", 2012 March 26
Adjective
so (not comparable)
- True, accurate.
- That is so. You are responsible for this, is that not so?
- 1908, W[illiam] B[lair] M[orton] Ferguson, chapter IV, in Zollenstein, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, OCLC 731476803:
- “My Continental prominence is improving,” I commented dryly. ¶ Von Lindowe cut at a furze bush with his silver-mounted rattan. ¶ “Quite so,” he said as dryly, his hand at his mustache. “I may say if your intentions were known your life would not be worth a curse.”
- In that state or manner; with that attribute. A proadjective that replaces the aforementioned adjective phrase.
- 1823, Andrew Reed, Martha
- If this separation was painful to all parties, it was most so to Martha.
- 1872, Charles Dickens, J., The Personal History of David Copperfield
- But if I had been more fit to be married, I might have made you more so too.
- 1947, Liberty Hyde Bailey, The Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture
- It must be understood that while the nelumbiums are hardy, they are so only as long as the tubers are out of the reach of frost.
- 1823, Andrew Reed, Martha
- (dated, Britain, slang) Homosexual.
- Is he so?
Synonyms
- (true): correct, right, true
- (euphemistic: homosexual): musical, one of the family, one of them, that way inclined
Derived terms
- make it so
- more so
Translations
Interjection
so
- Used after a pause for thought to introduce a new topic, question or story.
- Synonyms: look, well, see, hey
- So, let's go home.
- So, what'll you have?
- So, there was this squirrel stuck in the chimney...
- 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 11, in Mr. Pratt's Patients:
- So, after a spell, he decided to make the best of it and shoved us into the front parlor. 'Twas a dismal sort of place, with hair wreaths, and wax fruit, and tin lambrekins, and land knows what all.
- Short for so what.
- "You park your car in front of my house every morning." — "So?"
- Used to connect previous conversation or events to the following question.
- So how does this story end?
- So, everyone wants to know - did you win the contest or not?
- (archaic) Be as you are; stand still; used especially to cows; also used by sailors.
Usage notes
Though common for a long time, the "sentence-initial so" became controversial in the mid-2010s.[1]
Translations
|
Synonyms
- sb (“somebody”)
Etymology 2
Shortened from sol, to make it an open syllable for uniformity with the rest of the scale.
Noun
so (plural sos)
- (music) A syllable used in solfège to represent the fifth note of a major scale.
Translations
Noun
so (uncountable)
See also
So (dairy product) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia File:Kodai no So.JPG on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons
Aiwoo
References
- Greenhill, S.J., Blust. R, & Gray, R.D. (2008). The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics. Evolutionary Bioinformatics, 4:271-283.
Asturian
Derived terms
Adjective
so m sg (feminine singular so, neuter singular so, masculine plural sos, feminine plural sos)
Related terms
Alternative forms
Basque
Brokskat
Catalan
Danish
Etymology
From Old Norse sýr, from Proto-Germanic *sūz, from Proto-Indo-European *sū-.
Declension
Elfdalian
Esperanto
Pronunciation
Audio (file)
Faroese
Etymology
From Old Norse svá, from Proto-Germanic *swa, *swē (“so”), from Proto-Indo-European *swē, *swō (reflexive pronomial stem).
Folopa
Alternative forms
References
- Karl James Franklin, Pacific Linguistics (1973, →ISBN, page 130: Polopa so/sou woman, cf. DAR sou female animal but we woman.
- Karl J. Franklin, Comparative Wordlist 1 of the Gulf District and adjacent areas (1975), page 15: Boro, Suri, Tebera sou, Sopese šo
- Carol Anderson, Beginning Folopa Language Lessons and Simple Glossary (2010) (as so)
Friulian
Galician
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /so̝/
German
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /zoː/
Audio (file) - Rhymes: -oː
Adverb
so
- so, that
- Die Leute sind so nett. ― People are so nice.
- Dieser Hammer ist nicht so gut. ― This hammer is not that good.
- as (followed by an adjective or adverb plus wie in a statement of equality)
- Er rennt so schnell wie der Blitz. ― He runs as fast as lightning.
- thus, like this/that, in this/that way, in this/that manner
- Wenn du den Ball so wirfst, triffst du die Zielscheibe.
- If you throw the ball like this, you'll hit the target.
- then (in that case)
- Wirst du wieder gesund, so freue ich mich.
- If you get healthy again, then I'll be happy.
- (colloquial) expletive; sometimes intensifying, sometimes with no noticeable meaning
- Wir sind runtergegangen und haben uns hier so hingesetzt.
- We went downstairs and, like, sat down here.
Derived terms
Synonyms
Pronoun
so
Gothic
Irish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /sˠɔ/
Determiner
so
- Munster form of seo (used after a word ending in a velarized (“broad”) consonant)
- 1938, Peig Sayers, “Inghean an Cheannaidhe”[2]:
- Ní raibh aoinne cloinne age n-a muinntir ach í agus do mhéaduigh sin uirrim agus grádh na ndaoine don inghean óg so.
- Her parents had no children but her, and that increased the esteem and love of the people for this young girl.
- 1938, Peig Sayers, “Inghean an Cheannaidhe”[2]:
References
- So, What's The Big Deal With Starting A Sentence With 'So'?
- M. L. Sjoestedt-Jonval (1938), Description d’un parler irlandais de Kerry, Paris: Librairie Ancienne Honoré Champion, p. 193.
Italian
Alternative forms
- sò (misspelling)
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈsɔ/
- Rhymes: -ɔ
Verb
so
Usage notes
Unlike English, Italian verb forms for first/second/third-person are different, rendering io (“I”) redundant, unless emphasis is required as shown in last example above.
Luxembourgish
Mauritian Creole
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /so/
Middle Dutch
Etymology 1
From Old Dutch sō, from Proto-Germanic *swa.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /zoː/
Adverb
sô
Etymology 2
Weakened form of soe.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /zoː/, /zo/
Middle English
References
- “she, (pron.)” in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 9 May 2018.
Molise Croatian
Etymology
From Serbo-Croatian so.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /so/
Declension
singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
nominative | so | sola |
genitive | sola | soli, sol |
dative | solu | soli, solami |
accusative | so, sola | sola |
locative | solu | sola |
instrumental | solom, solam | soli, solami |
References
- Walter Breu and Giovanni Piccoli (2000), Dizionario croato molisano di Acquaviva Collecroce: Dizionario plurilingue della lingua slava della minoranza di provenienza dalmata di Acquaviva Collecroce in Provincia di Campobasso (Parte grammaticale).
Northern Sami
Norwegian Nynorsk
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Old Norse svá, from Proto-Indo-European *swa. Akin to English so.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /suː/
Adverb
so
Conjunction
so
- so
- Eg barberte meg, so ho skulle synast eg var fin.
- I shaved so that she would think I looked nice.
Old Dutch
Etymology
From Proto-Germanic *swa.
Old Irish
Etymology
From Proto-Celtic *so (“this”), from Proto-Indo-European *só.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /so/
Determiner
so
- this (used after the noun, which is preceded by the definite article)
- ind epistil so ― this epistle
Derived terms
Pali
Alternative forms
Rawa
Romani
Rwanda-Rundi
Serbo-Croatian
Alternative forms
- (Croatian): sȏl
Etymology
From Proto-Slavic *solь, from Proto-Indo-European *seh₂ls.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /sôː/
Slovene
Spanish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /so/
Etymology 1
From Latin sub, from Proto-Italic *supo, from Proto-Indo-European *upo.
Usage notes
So is very rare in modern Spanish, surviving only in certain expressions, including so pena de (“on pain of, under penalty of”), so pretexto de or so color de (“under pretext of”), a so capa (“secretly, with bribery”).
Pronoun
so
Swedish
Etymology
From Old Norse sýr, from Proto-Germanic *sūz, from Proto-Indo-European *sū-.
Usage notes
- The more common synonym is sugga, especially for the plural form.
Veps
Etymology
From Proto-Finnic *soo.
Inflection
Inflection of so | |||
---|---|---|---|
nominative sing. | so | ||
genitive sing. | son | ||
partitive sing. | sod | ||
partitive plur. | soid | ||
singular | plural | ||
nominative | so | sod | |
accusative | son | sod | |
genitive | son | soiden | |
partitive | sod | soid | |
essive-instructive | son | soin | |
translative | soks | soikš | |
inessive | sos | soiš | |
elative | sospäi | soišpäi | |
illative | ? | soihe | |
adessive | sol | soil | |
ablative | solpäi | soilpäi | |
allative | sole | soile | |
abessive | sota | soita | |
comitative | sonke | soidenke | |
prolative | sodme | soidme | |
approximative I | sonno | soidenno | |
approximative II | sonnoks | soidennoks | |
egressive | sonnopäi | soidennopäi | |
terminative I | ? | soihesai | |
terminative II | solesai | soilesai | |
terminative III | sossai | — | |
additive I | ? | soihepäi | |
additive II | solepäi | soilepäi |
Derived terms
- sohein
- sokesk
References
- Zajceva, N. G.; Mullonen, M. I. (2007), “болото”, in Uz’ venä-vepsläine vajehnik / Novyj russko-vepsskij slovarʹ [New Russian–Veps Dictionary], Petrozavodsk: Periodika
Vietnamese
Pronunciation
- (Hà Nội) IPA(key): [sɔ˧˧]
- (Huế) IPA(key): [ʂɔ˧˧]
- (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA(key): [ʂɔ˧˧] ~ [sɔ˧˧]
Verb
so
- (transitive) to compare
- So với bạn thì nó cao hơn. ― Compared to his friend, he is taller.
- (transitive) to pair up
- so đũa ― to pair up chopsticks
- (intransitive) to straighten one's shoulders, as if to compare one's height to another's
Synonyms
- (to compare): so sánh
Adjective
so
- firstborn
- con so ― firstborn child
- chửa con so ― to be pregnant for the first time
- trứng gà so ― a chicken's first egg (usually a small egg)
Derived terms
- con so
Volapük
Welsh
Verb
so
- (colloquial, South Wales) second-person singular present negative of bod
- (colloquial, South Wales) third-person singular present negative of bod
- So e’n credu. ― He doesn’t think so.
- (colloquial, South Wales) first-person plural present negative of bod
- (colloquial, South Wales) second-person plural present negative of bod
- (colloquial, South Wales) third-person plural present negative of bod