Meaning
Introduces a clause expressing purpose or result, meaning 'in order that'.
Primary Function
Expressing purpose
Communicative Purpose
To indicate the intended outcome or reason for an action
Pattern
So that
Core Structure
So that
Função primária
Expressing purpose
Propósito comunicativo
To indicate the intended outcome or reason for an action
Situações de gatilho
When explaining why you did something,When giving instructions that have a goal
Contextos
formal writing, academic essays, instructional manuals, everyday conversation
Padrão
So that
Estrutura central
So that
Slots de substituição
A clause that states the purpose or result (subject + verb + ...)
Colocados típicos
- you can
- we can
- they will
- it is
- the system
Substituições comuns
- in order to (more formal)
- so as to (more formal)
- for the purpose of (explicit)
Erros comuns
Using ‘so that’ for result instead of purpose, omitting the comma before the clause, pairing with present tense when future sense is required
Similar / contraste
in order that, so as to, so
Interferências
Learners may overuse ‘so that’ when their L1 prefers a different purpose conjunction, leading to unnatural frequency
Família do chunk
- so
- so that
- so as to
- in order to
Nuance
Can introduce either a purpose clause (often with modal verbs) or a result clause; more formal than plain ‘so’
Efeito pragmático
Signals the speaker’s intention, clarifies the goal of an action, and creates logical coherence
Dica de memória
purpose clause
Nota
A comma is often placed before 'so that' when it introduces a new clause, especially in formal writing.
Upgrade path
in order that
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