so

Conjunction

so

1. As a result; for that reason; therefore; because of this; due to this.
   • I was hungry, so I asked if there was any more food.
   • He ate too much cake and so he fell ill.
2. Used to connect previous conversation or events to the following question.
   • So how does this story end?
3. Used to introduce a rhetorical question.
   • “We'd like to visit but I don't know if we can afford a hotel.” — “So who's staying in a hotel? Stay with us.”
4. (archaic) Provided that; on condition that; as long as.
   • Speed. ‘Item: She doth talk in her sleep.’
     Launce. It’s no matter for that, so she sleep not in her talk.c. 1590–1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Two Gentlemen of Verona”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and...
   • As we cal money not onely that which is true and good, but also the false; so it be currant.1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 18, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC

Adverb

so (not comparable)

1. To the (explicitly stated) extent.
   • It was so hot outside that all the plants died.
   • He was so good, they hired him on the spot.
2. To the (implied) extent.
   • I need a piece of cloth so long. [= this long]
   • 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.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter II, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC
3. Very (positive or negative clause).
   • I feel so much better now.
   • I so nearly lost my temper.
4. Very much.
   • But I so want to see the Queen when she visits our town!
   • 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.1879, R[ichard] J[efferies], chapter 1, in The Amateur Poacher, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., […], →OCLC
   1. (informal) at all (negative clause).
      • That is so not true!
5. In the same manner or to the same extent as aforementioned; likewise, also.
   • As above, so below.
   • 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."

   Synonyms:

   like this, thus

6. Indeed.
   • ‘Look, it’s just stopped raining.’ ‘So it has!’
   • ‘There are two more.’ ‘So there are.’
7. To such an extent or degree; as.
   • so far as; so long as; so much as

Adjective

so (comparative more so, superlative most so)

1. Agreeing with actual facts or reality; true.
   • That is so.
   • You are responsible for this, is that not so?

   Synonyms:

   correct, right, true

2. In that state or manner; with that attribute. A proadjective that replaces the aforementioned adjective phrase.
   • "You're definitely not right about that." "I am so!" (→I am right about that).
   • If this separation was painful to all parties, it was most so to Martha.1823, Andrew Reed, Martha
3. (UK, dated, slang) Homosexual.
   • Is he so?

   Synonyms:

   musical

Interjection

1. Used after a pause for thought to introduce a new topic, question or story, or a new thought or question in continuation of an existing topic.
   • So, let's go home.
   • So, what'll you have?

   Synonyms:

   look, well, see, hey

2. Used as a question to ask for further explanation of something said, often rhetorically or in a dismissive or impolite manner.
   • "You park your car in front of my house every morning." — "So?"
3. Used as a meaningless filler word to begin a response to a question.
   • What are you doing? / So I'm just fixing this shelf.
   • What time does the train leave? / So it leaves at 10 o'clock.
4. (archaic) Be as you are; stand still; used especially to cows; also used by sailors.

Pronoun (1)

so

1. (demonstrative) That which was previously mentioned; that.
   • I'll become a loyal friend and remain so.
   • If that's what you really mean, then just say so.

Noun (1)

so (plural sos)

1. A syllable used in solfège to represent the fifth note of a major scale.
   1. Sometimes syllable for both the second and the fifth.

Noun (2)

so (uncountable)

1. (foods) A type of dairy product, made especially in Japan between the seventh and tenth centuries, by reducing milk by boiling it.

Noun (3) capitalized: SO

SO (plural SOs)

1. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of significant other.
2. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of shut out.
3. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of shootout.
4. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of strike out.
5. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of second-order logic.
6. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of symphony orchestra.
7. (abbreviation) Abbreviation of singlet oxygen.
8. (abbreviation, parliamentary) Abbreviation of standing order.

Pronoun (2) capitalized: SO

SO

1. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of someone.

Proper noun (1) capitalized: SO

SO

1. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of Stack Overflow.
   • Imagine that you were creating an application similar to SO but were writing it using web forms.2010, Alex Mackey, “ASP.NET MVC”, in Introducing .NET 4.0: With Visual Studio 2010 (The Expert’s Voice in .NET), [Berkeley, Calif.]: Apress, →ISBN, page 290
   • SO threads are mapped back into QuestionSheets. Information collected from SO includes the answer itself, the contributor’s reputation, and the number of votes (if any) (see Fig. 5).2018, Oscar Díaz, Jeremías P. Contell, “Educating Users to Formulate Questions in Q&A Platforms: A Scaffold for Google Sheets”, in John Krogstie, Hajo A. Reijers, editors, Advanced Information...

Noun (4) capitalized: So

So pl (plural only)

1. (plural, plural-only) A Mon-Khmer-speaking people of Laos and Thailand.

Noun (5) capitalized: So

So

1. (alternative) Alternative form of So..

Proper noun (2) capitalized: So

US/soʊ/

So

1. A Chinese surname from Cantonese.