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I am hearing more incidences of people being asked a direct question responding with a reply beginning with

So, ...

For example,

Questioner: "What do you think we should buy Janice for her birthday present?"

Respondent: "So, I thought that a voucher towards the cost of a meal for 2 at an expensive restaurant would be good, but with the Covid lockdown, I don't know when she would get any use out of it."

When, where and how did this enter into the English Language?

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  • @EdwinAshworth I was not provided with those threads when carrying out a search, hence my question. As you can see, I accepted the 2 suggestions made a few seconds before you posted this comment and closed my question as a duplicate
    – Chris Rogers
    Commented Apr 2, 2021 at 10:35
  • "So" is not a conjunction, but an adverb functioning as a connective adjunct.
    – BillJ
    Commented Apr 2, 2021 at 11:31
  • @BillJ you are correct in your assertion that "so" can be an adverb, but it can also be a conjunction (among others). See this Merriam Webster entry or this Cambridge Dictionary entry or this Oxford Learner's Dictionary entry
    – Chris Rogers
    Commented Apr 2, 2021 at 11:47
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    @ChrisRogers I wouldn't go along with you there. "So" is either an adverb, e.g. in the OP's example, or a preposition with a content clause complement, typically occurring in result or purpose adjuncts. It does not occur as a conjunction, despite what dictionaries tell us. They are fine for meanings, but hopeless for anything else!
    – BillJ
    Commented Apr 2, 2021 at 11:56

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