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Lucas21c Posted 10 years ago
Grammar

'so' vs 'that'

Could you tell me the difference between "I don't know why he said so" and "I don't know why he said that?"
  

Top answer

lucas21c "I don't know why he said so" For me, this includes the equality in both the tune of saying and the matters themselves. lucas21c "I don't know why he said that? This includes only the equality of the matters said.

— KhoshtipMan

  • lucas21c "I don't know why he said so" For me, this includes the equality in both the tune of saying and the matters themselves.
  • lucas21c "I don't know why he said that?
  • This includes only the equality of the matters said.
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8 Answers
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lucas21c "I don't know why he said so"
For me, this includes the equality in both the tune of saying and the matters themselves.
lucas21c"I don't know why he said that?
This includes only the equality of the matters said.
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lucas21cCould you tell me the difference between "I don't know why he said so" and "I don't know why he said that?"
There's no difference in meaning in that pair.

"So" an "that" are both pro-forms referring back to something previously mentioned, for example:

He said he knew her well, though I don't know why he said so / that
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lucas21cCould you tell me the difference between "I don't know why he said so" and "I don't know why he said that?"
There is a difference: "so" is an adverb in "I don't know why he said so" whereas "that" is a pronoun in "I don't know why he said that."

kw
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Anonymous lucas21cCould you tell me the difference between "I don't know why he said so" and "I don't know why he said that?"There is a difference: "so" is an adverb in "I don't know why he said so" whereas "that" is a pronoun in "I don't know why he said that."kw
The OP didn't ask about what parts of speech the words in question belonged to. And I didn't use
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He said he knew her well, though I don't know why he said so,

To me, this suggests more scepticism as to the truth of what he said.

Clive
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CliveHe said he knew her well, though I don't know why he said so,To me, this suggests more scepticism as to the truth of what he said.Clive
Quite possibly, but "that" could imply the same. It was just an example I quickly came up with to demonstrate the similar anaphoric use of the two words.

BillJ
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BillJThe OP didn't ask about what parts of speech the words in question belonged to.
I'm not convinced. It's the General English Grammar Questions forum.
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Anonymous BillJThe OP didn't ask about what parts of speech the words in question belonged to.I'm not convinced. It's the General English Grammar Questions forum.
To be frank, I'm not really bothered whether you're convinced or not. It's the OP to whom I sent my main reply. I'm sure they will post another question if they have any further concerns.

Bi
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