そう

See also: ぞう, Appendix:Variations of "so", and Appendix:Variations of "sou"

Japanese

Etymology 1

Japanese phrasebook

This entry is part of the phrasebook project, which presents criteria for inclusion based on utility, simplicity and commonness.

Alternative spelling
然う (rare)

/sau/ → /sɔː/ → /soː/

Pronunciation

When used as an adverb in a sentence, as in そういえば (sō ieba, “come to mention it”), そう思(おも)う (sō omou, “to think so”), or そうする (sō suru, “to do so”), it is pronounced as 平(へい)板(ばん)型(がた) (heibangata, “monotone pitch accent”), with no downstep:

(Tokyo) そー [sòó] (Heiban – [0])
IPA^(key): [so̞ː]

When used predicatively (before the copulae だ (da) and です (desu), their forms, or at the end of the sentence with a dropped copula) or as an interjection, it is pronounced as 頭(あたま)高(だか)型(がた) (atamadakagata), with a downstep after the first mora:

(Tokyo) そー [sóꜜò] (Atamadaka – [1])
IPA^(key): [so̞ː]

Adverb

そう • (sō) ^{←さう (sau)^?}

so, like that, in such a way, such
それはそう。／そりゃそうだろ。
Sore wa sō. ／ Sorya sō daro.
Well, of course.

私(わたし)もそう思(おも)う。
Watashi mo sō omou.
I also think so.

Interjection

そう • (sō) ^{←さう (sau)^?}

yes, yeah; it's like that; that's how it is; I see. (interjection to show that the speaker is paying attention)
- 1987 March 20 [1987 February 20], Fujiko Fujio, “テレパ椎(しい) [Telepathinkapin]”, in カンビュセスの籤(くじ) [Cambyses’s Drawing] (藤子不二雄ＳＦ全短編; 1), 2nd edition, volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Chuokoronsha, →ISBN, 第二章, page 386:
  
  おれたちや親(しん)友(ゆう)だな！そうだな
  そうだ　そうだ
  Ore-tachi ya shin'yū da na! Sō da na
  Sō da Sō da
  We are bosom buddies! Yes, we are.
  Yes, we are. Yes, we are.

Synonyms

はい (hai)
その通(とお)り (sono tōri)
うん (un)

Etymology 2

/sau/ → /sɔː/ → /soː/

Probably either a shift from 様(さま) (sama) or from 相(そう) (sō). Appears from the Muromachi period.^[1]^[2]

Possibly influenced by, or developed by analogy to, the adverbial and interjectional 然(そ)う (sō) above.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [so̞ː]

In Tokyo accent, the accent of the verb construction depends on the suffixed verb:^[3]

	Suffixed verb is accented	Suffixed verb is non-accented
Continuative stem + そう (-sō) (evidential)	Result has the accent on the そ (so) mora Example: つくりそーだ `[tsùkúrísóꜜò dà]`	Result is non-accented Example: あそびそーだ `[àsóbísóó dá]`
Finite form + そう (-sō) (hearsay)	Result keeps the original accent Example: つくるそーだ `[tsùkúꜜrù sòò dà]`	Result is accented on the そ (so) mora Example: あそぶそーだ `[àsóbú sóꜜò dà]`

Suffix

そう • (-sō) -na (adnominal そうな (-sō na), adverbial そうに (-sō ni))

seem, seem like, appear
(after the plain form of a verb or adjective) apparently, heard that (relating something heard from someone or somewhere else)

Usage notes

This productive suffix meaning “seeming like” can come after a full phrase in plain form, or after a verb or adjective stem, thereby forming a -na adjective.

After a full phrase in plain form, the resulting phrase implies reported speech, something heard from someone else. For example, the verb 降(ふ)る (furu, “to fall from the sky”) plus this suffix forms 降(ふ)るそう (furu sō, “I've heard that it will rain” or “someone told me that it will rain”). The adjective 美味(おい)しい (oishī, “delicious”) plus this suffix forms 美味(おい)しいそう (oishī sō, “I've heard that it's delicious”).

After a verb or adjective stem, the resulting word means “it looks like X”. For example, the stem 降(ふ)り (furi-) of the verb 降(ふ)る (furu, “to fall from the sky”) plus this suffix forms 降(ふ)りそう (furisō, “it looks like it will rain”). The stem 美味(おい)し (oishi-) of the adjective 美味(おい)しい (oishī, “delicious”) plus this suffix forms 美味(おい)しそう (oishisō, “looks delicious”). However, 良(い)い (ī) + そう (-sō) becomes よさそう (yosasō) and ない (nai, adjective) + そう (-sō) becomes なさそう (nasasō).

The suffix should not be used after stem forms describing visually obvious physical traits like color. Although 赤(あか)いそう (akai sō, “I've heard that it's red”) would be valid, *赤(あか)そう (*akasō, “it seems red”) would not. Another example of this is that 可愛(かわい)い (kawaī) means someone looks cute, so it does not need another そう (-sō). (かわいそう (kawaisō) does exist, but means “pitiful” or “poor”.) The suffix should, however, be used when describing another person's mood or mental state. For example, if another person looks glad, one says 嬉(うれ)しそう (ureshisō, “you seem glad”), which is more natural and polite than saying 嬉(うれ)しい (ureshī, “you are glad”).

This word is morphologically a clitic after a phrase in plain form, and an inflectional suffix after a verb or adjective stem. It is classified as a 助(じょ)動(どう)詞(し) (jodōshi, “auxiliary verb”) in traditional Japanese grammar.

Inflection

Inflection of そう

Stem forms
Imperfective (未然形)	そうだろ	そうだろ	-sō daro
Continuative (連用形)	そうで	そうで	-sō de
Terminal (終止形)	そうだ	そうだ	-sō da
Attributive (連体形)	そうな	そうな	-sō na
Hypothetical (仮定形)	そうなら	そうなら	-sō nara
Imperative (命令形)	そうであれ	そうであれ	-sō de are
Key constructions
Informal negative	そうではないそうじゃない	そうではないそうじゃない	-sō de wa nai -sō ja nai
Informal past	そうだった	そうだった	-sō datta
Informal negative past	そうではなかったそうじゃなかった	そうではなかったそうじゃなかった	-sō de wa nakatta -sō ja nakatta
Formal	そうです	そうです	-sō desu
Formal negative	そうではありませんそうじゃありません	そうではありませんそうじゃありません	-sō de wa arimasen -sō ja arimasen
Formal past	そうでした	そうでした	-sō deshita
Formal negative past	そうではありませんでしたそうじゃありませんでした	そうではありませんでしたそうじゃありませんでした	-sō de wa arimasen deshita -sō ja arimasen deshita
Conjunctive	そうで	そうで	-sō de
Conditional	そうなら（ば）	そうなら（ば）	-sō nara (ba)
Provisional	そうだったら	そうだったら	-sō dattara
Volitional	そうだろう	そうだろう	-sō darō
Adverbial	そうに	そうに	-sō ni
Degree	そうさ	そうさ	-sōsa

Derived terms

ありそう (arisō)
なさそう (nasasō)
良(よ)さそう (yosasō)
かわいそう (kawaisō)

Etymology 3

For pronunciation and definitions of そう – see the following entries.

【双】S	[adjective] pair; double [counter] counter for pairs

【壮】S	[adjective] vibrant, manly, brave [proper noun] a male given name

【宗】6	[proper noun] a surname

【相】3	[noun] appearance, how something looks [noun] an aspect of something [noun] (grammar) grammatical aspect [noun] (physics) a phase, as of matter [noun] (ikebana) the central supporting branch of an ikebana arrangement

【草】1	[noun] grass [noun] a draft, a rough copy [noun] cursive, calligraphy in a running hand [noun] something unofficial, an informal abbreviation or knock-off

【喪】S	[noun] mourning

【葬】S	[noun] burial

【僧】S	[noun] (Buddhism) priest, bonze

【層】6	[noun] layer [counter] counter for floors or stories of a building

【箏】H	[noun] a guzheng, zheng (Chinese zither) [proper noun] a surname

【左右】	[noun] (obsolete) left and right [noun] letter; tidings

【艘】H	[counter] small boats

【総】5	[prefix] overall, gross, general

【宋】J

[proper noun] Song (former Chinese dynasty):

[proper noun] name of the state during the Zhou dynasty (Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?)

[proper noun] the 劉宋 (Ryūsō), around 420-479

[proper noun] the 北宋 (Hokusō, “Northern Song”) and 南宋 (Nansō, “Southern Song”) dynasties, spanning around 960-1279

[proper noun] a surname

【走】2	[suffix] race; run

【添う】	[verb] to accompany [verb] to live up to Alternative spelling 副う

【沿う】	[verb] to run along (a river, railway, road, etc.), to line (the shore etc.) [verb] to follow (rules, guidelines, etc.) Alternative spellings 添う, 副う

【候そろ】4

[verb] (archaic) to be; auxiliary used in place of -ある after で or に when forming a copula

[verb] (archaic) to do; auxiliary used in place of -ます after the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of a verb

Alternative spelling
す

(This term, そう (sō), is the hiragana spelling of the above terms.)
For a list of all kanji read as そう, see Category:Japanese kanji read as そう.

(The following entries do not have a page created for them yet: 奏, 荘, 庄, 曹, 惣, 装, 想, 争, 甑, 騒, 疎雨, 疏雨, 副う.)

References

^ Shōgaku Tosho (1988), 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
^ Online Japanese Accent Dictionary (OJAD)

[KDJ-1] Shōgaku Tosho (1988), 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN

[DJR-2] Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

[3] Online Japanese Accent Dictionary (OJAD)

[1]

[2]

[3]

	ko- “this” (close to speaker)	so- “that” (close to listener)	a- “that over there” (far from both)	do- “which” (indeterminate, question)
Object	これ (kore)	それ (sore)	あれ (are)	どれ (dore)
Object	これら (korera)	それら (sorera)	あれら (arera)	—
Determiner	この (kono)	その (sono)	あの (ano)	どの (dono)
Determiner	これらの (korera no)	それらの (sorera no)	あれらの (arera no)	—
Kind	こんな (konna)	そんな (sonna)	あんな (anna)	どんな (donna)
Kind	こういう (kō iu)	そういう (sō iu)	ああいう (ā iu)	どういう (dō iu)
Place	ここ (koko)	そこ (soko)	あそこ (asoko)*	どこ (doko)
Place	こっから (kokkara)	そっから (sokkara)	—	どっから (dokkara)
Direction / Human	こちら (kochira)	そちら (sochira)	あちら (achira)	どちら (dochira)
Direction / Human	こなた (konata)	そなた (sonata)	あなた (anata)	どなた (donata)
Direction	こっち (kotchi)	そっち (sotchi)	あっち (atchi)	どっち (dotchi)
Human	こいつ (koitsu)^†	そいつ (soitsu)^†	あいつ (aitsu)^†	どいつ (doitsu)^†
Manner	こう (kō)	そう (sō)	ああ (ā)**	どう (dō)
Degree	これくらい (kore kurai)	それくらい (sore kurai)	あれくらい (are kurai)	どれくらい (dore kurai)
	これだけ (kore dake)	それだけ (sore dake)	あれだけ (are dake)	どれだけ (dore dake)
	これほど (kore hodo)	それほど (sore hodo)	あれほど (are hodo)	どれほど (dore hodo)