so ... that

so ... that means “so + adjective + that ...: the degree causes a result”. So + adjective/adverb + that clause links a high degree to its result: I was so tired that I fell asleep on the train. Formation: so + adj/adv + that + clause

so + adjective + that ...: the degree causes a result

B1

Formation

so + adj/adv + that + clause

Explanation

So + adjective/adverb + that clause links a high degree to its result: I was so tired that I fell asleep on the train. The that clause is a full sentence with its own subject and verb. Unlike too ... to, the result can be anything, positive or negative: The book was so good that I read it twice. In casual speech that is often dropped: It was so cold (that) we stayed home.

Examples

I was so tired that I fell asleep on the train.
The movie was so boring that we left early.

Note

Before a noun phrase use such, not so: such a long day (see egr090). So ... that + can't ≈ too ... to: so heavy that I can't lift it = too heavy to lift.

FAQ

so ... that — what does it mean and how is it used?

so + adjective + that ...: the degree causes a result. So + adjective/adverb + that clause links a high degree to its result: I was so tired that I fell asleep on the train. The that clause is a full sentence with its own subject and verb. Unlike too ... to, the result can be anything, positive or negative: The book was so good that I read it twice. In casual speech that is often dropped: It was so cold (that) we stayed home.

so ... that — how do you form it?

so + adj/adv + that + clause

so ... that — any usage notes?

Before a noun phrase use such, not so: such a long day (see egr090). So ... that + can't ≈ too ... to: so heavy that I can't lift it = too heavy to lift.

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