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Debpriya De Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
So what if
"So what if I came late ?"
Is the above sentence grammatically correct ?
Shouldn't it be "I came late. So what ?"
Is the above sentence grammatically correct ?
Shouldn't it be "I came late. So what ?"
Top answer
Both ways are fine and common in casual conversation. A bit rude, though.
- Both ways are fine and common in casual conversation.
- A bit rude, though.
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5 Answers
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Both ways are fine and common in casual conversation. A bit rude, though.
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But with "if" we don't use "so", for example we say "If you are a native you must know the way" or
"If you are a native, then you must know the way". But we don't say "If you are a native, so you must know the way."
Then how can we say "So what if you are late" ?
"If you are a native, then you must know the way". But we don't say "If you are a native, so you must know the way."
Then how can we say "So what if you are late" ?
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What is it that you wish the phrase to mean? As it stands it can be taken more than one way.
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Yes, but is the "if......so" structure considered correct ?
We don't say "If I come late so leave without me."
We say "If I come late then leave without me."
My original sentence was "So what if I came late", which is equivalent to "If I came late so what", which uses a "so-clause" with an "if clause".
We don't say "If I come late so leave without me."
We say "If I come late then leave without me."
My original sentence was "So what if I came late", which is equivalent to "If I came late so what", which uses a "so-clause" with an "if clause".
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I think it is best to simply consider 'so what' an idiomatic expression as many dictionaries do:
27. So what? Informal . (an
27. So what? Informal . (an
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