So Tell Me—When Is It Correct to Use So

Having trouble viewing this message? [Click here to view it online.]( To unsubscribe or change contact details, scroll to the bottom and follow the link. [GrammarBook.com]( Your #1 Source for Grammar and Punctuation So Tell Me—When Is It Correct to Use So So: It's among the shortest words in English, and use of it abounds. So, when are we going to meet up? That movie was so good. I so much want to be there. He's not feeling well, so he probably won't go to the meeting. The word has become a versatile agent for our language during the last couple of centuries. Yet as many of us know, sometimes familiarity can breed contempt. Once a word starts to appear anytime, anywhere, we begin to question its identity and perhaps its validity too. We all may have heard instances when, similar to the word like, so has served as a sentence filler. This casual use paves the way for so to seep into contexts where it doesn't belong or may not be needed. To get to the bottom of what the word really means and how we should approach it in formal writing today, let's start with how Merriam-Webster online helps to define it: so (adv): in a manner stated or suggested; in the same way; to a great degree; without a doubt so (conj): for that reason, therefore; with the result that, in order that so (adj): agreeing with actual facts, true; marked by a desired order so (pron): such has been specified or suggested; also used in the phrase or so to indicate an estimate, approximation, or conjecture (It will cost about $500 or so.) Using those definitions, let's look at some sentence examples: so (adv): That outfit makes her look so grown up. so (conj): The event was longer than we expected, so we decided to leave early. so (adj): You might think the company is changing its policy, but that isn't so. so (pron): If you have to return the item, do so in the next 30 days. M-W further points out that while some college handbooks renounce so as an “intensive” for comparison (refer to the adverb example above), it still remains standard usage (e.g., Janice was so intelligent that her teachers didn't know what level to place her in). Another question concerns whether to use so or so that in clauses that communicate purpose (e.g., Sally stayed home [so or so that] I could go to the ball game). Both the Harbrace College Handbook and The Rinehart Guide to Grammar and Usage agree that so that provides a clearer sentence structure and a better tone for formal writing. Uncertainty may also arise about how to link clauses including so as a conjunction, as in the following examples: Pete is the fastest runner; so he'll run the last leg of the 400-meter relay. Pete is the fastest runner, so he'll run the last leg of the 400-meter relay. Pete is the fastest runner, and so he'll run the last leg of the 400-meter relay. Some grammar sources cite the first example above containing the two clauses separated by a semicolon as acceptable; GrammarBook views this style as outdated. Others prefer the second usage, two clauses separated by a comma and so as a conjunction; we agree. A majority would forgo the use of and so with a comma as an unnecessary doubling of conjunctions. On a similar note, grammar sources concur that writers should not rely on so as an adverb to join ideas that would be better connected with a subordinate clause (one that cannot stand alone in a sentence). Conjoining ideas with so should mainly give them equal emphasis. Examples Awkwardly reliant on so: The speakers were friendly, so they got along with everyone, and they were well received. Better: Because the speakers were friendly, they got along with everyone and were well received. Equal emphasis with so as an adverb for conjunction: The job required too much travel, so I turned it down. Putting these thoughts and guidelines into practice should help us rein in runaway so's in formal writing, so let's commit to doing so, shall we? [View and comment on this article on our website.]( Happy Thanksgiving In celebration of the Thanksgiving holiday, we will not be issuing an e-newsletter next week. We will resume on November 29. We wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving, and we hope you have a wonderful time with family and friends. [Click here to watch our video on Colons]( Pop Quiz The following sentences include the main parts of speech for so defined in this article. Identify whether each use of so is an adverb, a conjunction, an adjective, or a pronoun. 1. The item was too expensive, so we didn't buy it. [adv / conj / adj / pron] 2. To do so would be to risk alienating our allies in the cause. [adv / conj / adj / pron] 3. You lost the ring down the drain? Tell me it isn't so! [adv / conj / adj / pron] 4. He is so quick that not even our fastest defender can keep up with him. [adv / conj / adj / pron] The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation by Lester Kaufman and Jane Straus The Authority on English Grammar! Twelfth Edition Now Available An indispensable tool for busy professionals, teachers, students, homeschool families, editors, writers, and proofreaders. Available in print AND as an e-Book! Over 2,000 copies are purchased every month! To order the book, simply click the link to order the book from the [GrammarBook.com]( website. [Order Your Copy Today!]( Free BONUS Quiz for You! {NAME}, because you are a subscriber to the newsletter, you get access to one of the Subscribers-Only Quizzes. Click here to take a [Confusing Words and Homonyms Quiz]( and get your scores and explanations instantly! We will be adding many more quizzes this year to our already substantial list of them. 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To do so would be to risk alienating our allies in the cause. [pron] 3. You lost the ring down the drain? Tell me it isn't so! [adj] 4. He is so quick that not even our fastest defender can keep up with him. [adv] English in a Snap: 68 One-Minute English Usage Videos FREE Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Share them with your colleagues (and boss), children, teachers, and friends as well! [Click here to watch](. Forward this e-newsletter to your friends and colleagues. If you received this FREE weekly e-newsletter from a friend, [click here to have it sent to you each week](. Look for more grammar tips or writing advice from [GrammarBook.com]( next week. Miss a recent newsletter? [Click here to view past editions](. 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