sort of
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See also: sort-of
English[edit]
Alternative forms[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From a reanalysis of "sort of" in a phrase such as "a sort of merry dance" from noun ("sort") and preposition ("of") from the prepositional phrase "of merry dance" to adverb modifying "merry".
Pronunciation[edit]
- (US) IPA(key): /ˈsɔɹt əv/, [ˈsɔɹɾəv]
- (UK) IPA(key): /ˈsɔːt əv/, [ˈsɔːt əv], [ˈsɔːʔ əv], [ˈsətəv]
Audio (AU) (file)
Adverb[edit]
sort of (not comparable)
- (idiomatic, colloquial) Approximately; in a way; partially; not quite; somewhat.
- It sort of makes sense the way he explains it, but I still don't really understand.
- 1916 March 11, Charles E. Van Loan, “His Folks”, in Saturday Evening Post[1]:
- "Why—why, we sort of expected he'd be here!" says she.
- 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XIX, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
- Nothing was too small to receive attention, if a supervising eye could suggest improvements likely to conduce to the common welfare. Mr. Gordon Burnage, for instance, personally visited dust-bins and back premises, accompanied by a sort of village bailiff, going his round like a commanding officer doing billets.
- 1963, Margery Allingham, “Foreword”, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
- ‘I understand that the district was considered a sort of sanctuary,’ the Chief was saying. ‘An Alsatia like the ancient one behind the Strand, or the Saffron Hill before the First World War. […]’
- 2023 April 5, RAIL, number 980:
- Anne Shaw tells Peter Plisner, "West Midlands Metro metamorphosis", page 32:
"It sort of transforms that location," says Shaw.
Pip Dunn, "'196s' giving commuters a smoother ride", page 55:
Messy trains are horrible, but you can sort of understand passengers leaving their sandwich wrappers and paper cups if there is nowhere to dispose of them.
Synonyms[edit]
Translations[edit]
in a way etc.
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