''So'' is an English word that, apart from its other uses, has become increasingly popular in recent years as a

coordinating conjunctive In grammar, a conjunction (abbreviated or ) is a part of speech that connects words, phrases, or clauses that are called the conjuncts of the conjunctions. That definition may overlap with that of other parts of speech and so what constitutes a ...

opening word in a sentence. This device is particularly used when answering questions although the questioner may also use the device. So may also be used to end sentences. When ending a sentence, it may be: * a

to refer backwards to something previously mentioned * a coordinating conjunctive dangling "so" (sometimes called trailing "so")So What? What it means when people leave the word “so” dangling at the end of a sentence
''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

'' Julie Beck 26 Aug 2015 to refer forwards to something that may be said * an intensifying

adverb An adverb is a word or an expression that generally modifies a verb, adjective, another adverb, determiner, clause, preposition, or sentence. Adverbs typically express manner, place, time, frequency, degree, level of certainty, etc., answering ...

Sentence opener

The first known written use of ''so'' as a sentence opener is in several lines of

Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer (; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for '' The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...

's ''

Troilus and Criseyde ''Troilus and Criseyde'' () is an epic poem by Geoffrey Chaucer which re-tells in Middle English the tragic story of the lovers Troilus and Criseyde set against a backdrop of war during the siege of Troy. It was written in '' rime royale'' an ...

'', published in the mid-1380s, for example: ''So'' as a sentence opener has been used in later historical literary works such as: * ''

The Rape of Lucrece ''The Rape of Lucrece'' (1594) is a narrative poem by William Shakespeare about the legendary Roman noblewoman Lucretia. In his previous narrative poem, '' Venus and Adonis'' (1593), Shakespeare had included a dedicatory letter to his patron, ...

'', 1594, by

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

* '' Pamela: or, Virtue Rewarded'', 1740, by

Samuel Richardson Samuel Richardson (baptised 19 August 1689 – 4 July 1761) was an English writer and printer known for three epistolary novels: ''Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded'' (1740), '' Clarissa: Or the History of a Young Lady'' (1748) and ''The History of ...

It is widely believed that the recent ascendancy of ''so'' as a sentence opener began in

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo County ...

Michael Lewis Michael Monroe Lewis (born October 15, 1960) Gale Biography In Context. is an American author and financial journalist. He has also been a contributing editor to '' Vanity Fair'' since 2009, writing mostly on business, finance, and economics. H ...

, in his book ''

The New New Thing ''The New New Thing: A Silicon Valley Story'' is a book by Michael M. Lewis published in 1999 by W. W. Norton & Company. Synopsis The book is written with a comedic touch similar to that of the Lewis's earlier book ''Liar's Poker''. The book f ...

'', published in 1999, noted that "When a computer programmer answers a question, he often begins with the word 'so.

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...

employees have long argued that the "so" boom began with them.

Purpose

Various suggestions have been made as to its purpose: * as a coordinating conjunctive to refer backwards to something previously mentioned * as a

discourse marker A discourse marker is a word or a phrase that plays a role in managing the flow and structure of discourse. Since their main function is at the level of discourse (sequences of utterances) rather than at the level of utterances or sentences, disco ...

* to signal that the following words are chosen for their relevance to the listener * to provide a small amount of extra thinking time In his Modern English translation of

Beowulf ''Beowulf'' (; ang, Bēowulf ) is an Old English epic poem in the tradition of Germanic heroic legend consisting of 3,182 alliterative lines. It is one of the most important and most often translated works of Old English literature. The ...

, Irish poet

Seamus Heaney Seamus Justin Heaney (; 13 April 1939 – 30 August 2013) was an Irish poet, playwright and translator. He received the 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature.

uses "So" to translate the single-word opening line, ''Hwæt!'' (also rendered 'lo', 'hark', 'listen', etc). He explains that "in

Hiberno-English Hiberno-English (from Latin ''Hibernia'': "Ireland"), and in ga, Béarla na hÉireann. or Irish English, also formerly Anglo-Irish, is the set of English dialects native to the island of Ireland (including both the Republic of Ireland a ...

Scullion-speak ..'so' operates as an expression that obliterates all previous discourse and narrative, and at the same time functions as an exclamation calling for immediate attention. So, 'so' it was".

Sentence closer

Referring back

"So" may refer back to something previously mentioned, such as: * "If she notices, she never says so." * Speaker 1: "Has somebody called an ambulance?" Speaker 2: "I believe so." Other possibilities include:

Dangling so

A dangling "so" in conversation invites the listener to articulate or consider the implications of the information provided without the speaker having to articulate it himself or herself. It has been interpreted as sometimes a form of

bragging Boasting or bragging is speaking with excessive pride and self-satisfaction about one's achievements, possessions, or abilities. Boasting occurs when someone feels a sense of satisfaction or when someone feels that whatever occurred proves thei ...

.People who end sentences with 'so': Yes, they're bragging
''

Crain's Chicago Business ''Crain's Chicago Business'' is a weekly business newspaper in Chicago, IL. It is owned by Detroit-based Crain Communications, a privately held publishing company with more than 30 magazines, including ''Advertising Age'', ''Modern Healthcare'' ...

'' Lisa Bertagnoli 15 May 2010 A dangling "so" in conversation may be represented in text as "so" followed by an

ellipsis The ellipsis (, also known informally as dot dot dot) is a series of dots that indicates an intentional omission of a word, sentence, or whole section from a text without altering its original meaning. The plural is ellipses. The term origin ...

: "...".Why do people end sentences with “so”? What effect does it have on conversation?
''

Dictionary.com Dictionary.com is an online dictionary whose domain was first registered on May 14, 1995. The primary content on Dictionary.com is a proprietary dictionary based on ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'', with editors for the site providing new a ...

'' Jane Solomon 21 Aug 2013 Examples of dangling "so": * "Yeah, it's pretty exciting, though we're not really sure whether it will work out, so..." * Speaker 1: "How was your date?" Speaker 2: "Well, he didn't show up, so..."

Intensifying adverb

"So" may close a sentence as an intensifying adverb, such as in "I love her so". "So" in the middle of a sentence can also be an intensifying adverb, such as in "I so love her".

References

External links

The "so" panel on "Global with Jon Sopel"

BBC World News BBC World News is an international English-language pay television network, operated under the ''BBC Global News Limited'' division of the BBC, which is a public corporation of the UK government's Department for Digital, Culture, Media and S ...

22 May 2014
Q&A: Why do I always begin my sentences with 'So'?
English grammar Discourse analysis