π Image
Can so be used as an intensive?: Usage Guide
The intensive use of so (sense 2b) is widely condemned but is nonetheless standard.
why is American television so shallow? βπ Image Anthony Lewis
the cephalopod eye is an example of a remarkable evolutionary parallel because it is so like the eye of a vertebrate βπ Image Sarah F. Robbins
the kind of sterile over-ingenuity which afflicts so many academic efforts βπ Image The Times Literary Supplement (London)
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 βπ Image 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.
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.
Adverb
I don't think they can score twice in so short a time.
There has always been an interest in genetic cloning, but never more so than in recent years.
He looked so handsome in his suit.
We are all so excited about the trip.
I'm so happy that you decided to join us for dinner.
I feel so much better after taking that nap.
Thank you so much for your help.
He dislikes her so much that he won't even talk to her.
The test was not so very hard after all.
βHe is about so tall,β she said, raising her hand about six feet in the air. Conjunction
We were bored with the movie, so we left.
I don't want to go, so I won't.
There are no more chairs available, so you'll have to stand. Adjective
You are saying things that are just not so.
I heard you met the presidentβis that so?
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Play bravely so joy recharges your creative core.βπ Image Tarot.com, The Orlando Sentinel, 28 Feb. 2026 But this is not necessarily so.βπ Image Joe Rao, Space.com, 19 Sep. 2025
Noun
After examining nearly 160 yearsβ worth of womenβs clothing, an interdisciplinary research team confirms that fashion trends frequently resurface every 20-or-so years.βπ Image Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 18 Mar. 2026 The practice of slowly sipping a 125Β°F cup of Sake feels cozy, grounding, and oh-so Taurean.βπ Image Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for so
Word History
Etymology
Adverb
Middle English, from Old English swΔ; akin to Old High German sΕ so, Latin sic so, thus, si if, Greek hΕs so, thus, Latin suus one's own β more at suicide
First Known Use
Adverb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Conjunction
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Adjective
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Pronoun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of so was
before the 12th century
