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Why do so many people use the phrase "So many"?

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Fnord
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10 Feb 2014, 8:10 pm

When "So many" is used in a sentence like "Why do so many people like ice cream?" or "How can so many people vote Republican?", what exactly does it mean?

Is "so many" just another place-filler for vague amounts like "a lot" or "bunches of"?

Or does it really imply that the person asking the question either can not count or simply has no idea what he or she is talking about?

Just asking.



Misslizard
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10 Feb 2014, 8:14 pm

There are so many was to use it to describe an unknown number of whatever. :D


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MjrMajorMajor
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10 Feb 2014, 8:28 pm

First option. So many questions can be asked without a precise headcount needed. :tongue:



Who_Am_I
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11 Feb 2014, 2:31 am

Quote:
Is "so many" just another place-filler for vague amounts like "a lot" or "bunches of"?



Pretty much, yeah.

What did you mean when you used it in the thread title?


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TallyMan
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11 Feb 2014, 3:17 am

There are only so many ways a vague quantity can be expressed.


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EzraS
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11 Feb 2014, 4:31 am

I can eat so many gummy bears