We often use 'so' and 'such' to mean 'very' or 'really'.
We use 'so' before an adjective or adverb (without a noun).
· She was so beautiful (= she was very beautiful).
· He ran so quickly (= he ran very quickly).
We use 'such' before a noun or an adjective + a noun. If there is 'a' or 'an', it goes after 'such'.
· She was such a beautiful woman (= she was a very beautiful woman).
· He got such a good time in the race (= he got a very good time in the race).
· It was such delicious food (= it was really delicious food).
We can use 'so... that...' and 'such... that...' to show that there is a certain result. (We can't use 'very' or 'really' in this way.)
· It was so cold that the pond froze (= because it was very cold, the pond froze).
· She felt so tired that she fell asleep on the train (= because she was very tired, she fell asleep on the train).
(We can drop 'that' when we use 'so' and 'such' in this way)
We can use 'so' and 'such' to mean 'to this level' or 'as ... as this'.
· He isn't usually so late (= he isn't usually as late as this).
· I don't often drink such a lot of coffee (= I don't often drink as much coffee as this).
We use 'so' before 'much / many / little / few' with and without a noun. This shows that the amount is really a lot or really little. As usual, we use a plural noun after 'many' and 'few' and an uncountable noun after 'much' and 'little'.
· I ate so much.
· I ate so much cake.
· He had so many.
· He had so many books.
· Why did you eat so little?
Other Uses of So and Such
Here are a few more idiomatic uses of 'such' and 'so' that are slightly different from what we have already seen.
Such + noun = a certain type or kind of (this is quite formal)
· I'd never heard such music before. (= I'd never heard this kind of music before.)
Such as = for example / like
· A We should get a film for tonight. B: Such as? (= please give an example of a film)
So = something that has already been said
· A: Is dinner ready? B: I hope so (= I hope that dinner is ready)
· Is that so? (= is that right?)
Or so = approximately
· I think there were fifty people or so at the party (= I think there were approximately fifty people at the party).
Practice
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