# So is this a new thing? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 7, 2016, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-this-a-new-thing/770970 "2016-11-07T16:48:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-this-a-new-thing/770970/21 "2016-11-08T13:59:49Z")
Just last week I started a long text to a friend with: > [@](#): > > So. (yes, in my world, that’s a sentence) > Here’s my take on that… ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-this-a-new-thing/770970/22 "2016-11-08T14:00:04Z")
Sometimes, it seems to function as a way of suggesting you were already in a conversation and you’re either bringing the person you’re talking to into it, or assuming that you’re picking up an old thread of conversation, as though there’s an unspoken “anyway” or “as I was saying” after the “So”. Or maybe it’s just implying “Back to _me_”. Somehow that’s a bit like the way the Australian uptick at the end of a sentence is implicitly assuming that the speaker is re-capping what the hearer should already know, but being perhaps a bit slow on the uptake, needs to be reminded of. ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-this-a-new-thing/770970/23 "2016-11-08T15:18:09Z")
Sew zippers on your socks. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-this-a-new-thing/770970/24 "2016-11-08T16:59:14Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > So, I’ve personally been doing it for at least three decades. > > It’s basically a filler to say “I’m acknowledging that I heard you, but I need a moment to compose my thought” > > For me it’s usually of the form, Soooooo,_pause_ Ok, We are going to need to…" What im referring to is different in that the speaker starts with a quick “So” then right into their response. It doesn’t come across as an “ummmmm” in order to buy time even though it might be. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-this-a-new-thing/770970/25 "2016-11-08T17:02:10Z")
> [@Steken](#): > > We’ve had threads on this many times before. Have you ever tried to punch in the word “so” in a search engine? Besides, Im sure this thread is better! 😛 Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-this-a-new-thing/770970/26 "2016-11-08T18:19:58Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > Have you ever tried to punch in the word “so” in a search engine? > > Besides, Im sure this thread is better! 😛 So, 2014 called… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-this-a-new-thing/770970.md?page=1)