'so' and 'such'

Do you know how to use the words so and such?

Look at these examples to see how so and such are used.

She's so interesting!
This is such an interesting book.
A new phone costs so much money these days.
Traffic in the city centre is such a nightmare!

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Grammar test 1: 'so' and 'such': Grammar test 1

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation

We can use so and such to intensify adjectives, adverbs and nouns.

Adjectives and adverbs

We can use so with an adjective or adverb to make it stronger.

It's so hot today!
She looks so young in that photo.
He walks so slowly. It's so annoying!

If we are using the comparative form of the adjective or adverb, we use so much to make it stronger.

They were so much more innocent when they were younger.
I work so much more quickly when I can concentrate.

Nouns

With a noun or adjective + noun, we use such to make it stronger.

You're such an angel!
It's such a hot day today!
They're such lovely trousers. Where did you buy them?

However, when we use much, many, little and few with a noun, we use so to make it stronger.

There are so many people here!
I've had so little time to myself this week.

Saying the result

We often use these so and such structures with that and a clause to say what the result is.

It was so cold that the water in the lake froze.
He was such a good teacher that we all passed the exam.
There's so much noise that I can't think!

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Grammar test 2: 'so' and 'such': Grammar test 2

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Language level

B2 English level (upper intermediate)

Nice :D

8/8

Hi,

i got wrong in number 7.I thought so but the answer is such.Can anyone explain me please?

Hi Khine Zin Nyein,

It's because there is the noun 'students' in the phrase: "such hard-working students".

Use 'so' if there is just an adjective in the phrase, e.g. "I've never had students who are so hard-working".

Does that make sense?

Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team

Hello Teachers
in this sentence "such an amazing food from such a small restaurant "
What do the first such and the second such mean? and is it correct with the article "an" in it?

Hi Ahmed Hassan,

Both times, 'such' is for emphasis. The speaker wants to emphasise how good the good was, and how small the restaurant was.

'Food' is usually used as an uncountable noun, so people would usually say 'such amazing food' (without 'an') - unless they are talking about one specific food.

I hope that helps :)

Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team

yes thats correct, becouse the word ''amaizing" begins with vowel...

Nice :D

Hello team Need to clarify this what is the correct way to ask the question Has he a car? Or Does he have a car?

Hi Samin,

Good question! Both are grammatically correct. Nowadays, the second one is much more commonly used, and I'd recommend using that form. The first one sounds more formal and less modern, and is less commonly used.

Jonathan

The LearnEnglish Team

Hello, thank you for the lesson; it was really helpful. However, I have a question about this topic: "It was so kind of him to help me that I bought him some flowers to say thank you" I thought that "kind" in that context was a noun for that reason I used the word "such" before "kind", but when I saw the answer in my book, the correct one was "so" (It is taking "kind" as an adjective and I don't understand why) Could you explain me why it is taking "kind" as an adjective please? And also I have a question from another topic. Here you are: Is it correct to say: "I don't really like these shoes. I'd rather they had a different or color"? If this sentence is not correct. Could you please replace the word "had" for other one which is correct?

Hi GiulianaAndy,

Kind is an adjective, meaning 'generous' or 'nice'. The noun for this meaning is kindness (= generosity). Kind is a noun too, but it doesn't mean the same thing - kind (noun) means 'type' or 'sort', not 'kindness' - so that meaning doesn't work in this sentence.

In the structure It/That was ____ of (somebody), an adjective can fill the gap, for example:

It was (so) kind of him. (kind = adjective)
That was (so) nice of you. (nice = adjective)

You can use a noun with 'such' too, but that needs the adjective kind describing a noun, e.g.

It was such a kind thing to do that I bought him ... (kind = adjective)

Or the noun kindness:

It was such kindness that I bought him ... (kindness = noun)

The first way (using the adjective) is the more common way to say this meaning.

About your second question, the phrase is something is (not 'has') a colour. We need to use a form of the verb be. So, it should be --> I'd rather they were a different colour.

Does that make sense?

Jonathan

The LearnEnglish Team

You're such an angel! :)

Hello, great lesson. However, I have a question about the question 5 in the grammar test 2. It says: "It was so kind of him.........". I thought that kind is being a noun and because of that I chose "such" and not "so", but when I so the answer it was "so". Could you explain me what should I use "so" and not "such", please? Thank you very much.

Hello GiulianaAndy,

The word kind is an adjective, so if it is by itself we use so:

It was so kind of him...

If there is a noun with the adjective then we use such:

He was such a kind man.

The noun from kind would be kindness:

He showed such kindness.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Thank you very much :)

He's such a nice guy. ( ˘ ³˘)♥ ﾟ+｡:.ﾟ He's so unique. ( ^-^)ノ∠※。.:*:・’°☆

If I am correct,your above examples was only described with affirmative sentences.Is it possible to use in negative form to make sentence stronger such as "I am not so much cleverer than him". THANK YOU!

Hello Harry,

Yes, it is possible to say that. A comparative form (so much cleverer) would be used as a response to a perceived exaggeration:

Your hotel is many times more expensive than the other one!

No, it's not so much more expensive. Perhap a little, but not so much.

With a normal (non-comparative) adjective it

He isn't so clever. He's just very confident when he speaks.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Hello. Wich one is correct response to " I'm hungry", so am i or so do i?

Hello Mason2afm,

The correct form here is 'So am I'.

When the verb in the first sentence is 'be' (am, are, were etc) then it is repeated in the answer. If a different verb were used then we might use 'do', depending on the form of the verb.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

I'm SO interested because of SUCH a fascinating lesson

Thanks for that

Thanks Sir

I'm wondering if I want to say (such little different)

Hello! I was wondering the same thing but then I thought maybe it would be correct to use such with differnce(as a noun)instead of different (adjective)

Hello Memmedeva Nezrin,

It's difficult to say whether a phrase is correct or not when it isn't complete. For example, 'such different' by itself is not correct (instead, use 'such a difference').

But if a noun follows 'different' -- for example, 'They have such different ideas about friendship' -- then it is correct.

If 'different' doesn't precede a noun, then 'so' is correct: 'Their ideas about friendship are so different'.

Hope this helps.

All the best,

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

It's so nice to see such curious students in the comment section.

I like it

It is such an interesting lesson I have learned so far . It is such a wonderful day !,I have achieved a 50 words per minutes typing speed.

I was so focused on the topic that I could undestand it without problems, due to the examples they mentioned,now, they have clarified my doubt.

These lessons are so interesting to learn

so is used with adjectives and such comes with adj+ noun combinations ti intensify the meaning of a sentence.

I think this words are so functional! because always allow us intensify something

thanks sir

I'm wondering if we could use "such" for plural things? They're such beautiful views. Is it correct?

Hello Rafaela1

Yes, you that is correct. These are such interesting times.

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

I have had give my test but when I clicked for correct answer then shown me every answer was wrong but it wasn't wrong all answer few of my answer was correct even so there was shown every answers wrong. I think some have problem in that test.

Hello Karan Narang,

That sounds quite odd. Perhaps you could tell us some of your answers and we'll check to see if there is a problem with them. Remember that it's important to have each answer correct in terms of punctuation (no extra spaces, for example), spelling and capitalisation.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Hello Karan Narang The same problem happened with me but when I retry I realised that I was writing the words with capital letters and that's the problem, probably this is why all your answers were wrong.

I learned a lot about this topic. It's such a clear explanation that I understand how to use these two words. Thanks

Hello Sir Is this sentence correct? Don't take such a long time. Please let me know Thank you. Regards Lal

Hello Lal,

Yes, that sentence is grammatically correct. Whether it is appropriate in a given context will depend upon the context, of course.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Hello. I can’t find here the use of “so” that I am looking for. Eg. As it was in the beginning SO it will be in the end. Could you redirect me and tell me what this “so” represents? I would like to understand how verbs and their order are used in this context. Eg. As it was in the beginning so IT WILL BE in the end; or, As it was in the beginning so WILL IT BE in the end. And if the second is correct, why? Thank you

Hello aurora kastanias

Yes, 'so' is quite a versatile word. If you follow the link, the meaning here is the one under 'so adverb (in this way)'. Another way of saying this sentence would be something like 'At the end it will be just like it was in the beginning'.

It would not be correct to change the word order to the one you ask about. The order of subjects and verbs does indeed change sometimes -- for example, after negative adverbial expressions -- but not typically after 'so'.

I'm not sure where you found this, but it reminds me of the King James Version of the Bible. If so, it would sound quite strange to use that style in ordinary speaking these days.

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

I think I’ve heard people saying “so and so” or “such and such”. Am I right? Does anyone know what they mean?

Hello Rafaela1,

Yes, you are correct.

So and so is used to describe people when we don't want to or can't name them. Such and such is used in the same way for things.

You can see examples in the dictionary entries for each:

http://www.learnersdictionary.com/definition/such%20and%20such

http://www.learnersdictionary.com/definition/so-and-so

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Thank you, Peter, for your explanation!

Today I studied Reported Speech and So and Such to further strengthen the language and thus learn more about these topics.