So...
When DID it become the norm to begin every sentence with, So…? It seems to go back several years, so it will be a difficult habit to break. The word so in the previous sentence is correct. So means, thus in this instance. Actually, in both verbal and written English, the word so has multiple functions, according to Google, it can act as an adverb, a conjunction, a pronoun, an adjective, or an interjection depending on the context. But using So to begin a sentence is almost never a proper use of the word.
We’ve substituted Ummmm, with So, or Sooo. And we often employ its use when we have been asked a question. Clearly, we are using it as a delaying mechanism, to give ourselves time to organize our thoughts about what we are going to say. It would be better to use a moment of silence than these two little letters. Silence, at least, will not make a person look unpolished or unprofessional.
Beginning a sentence with so is so prevalent now, that we don’t even notice it. But we should! Listen to news broadcasts, especially the interviews; notice that it’s becoming rare for someone to begin the answer to a question without prefacing it with the word, So. When you become aware of this habit you will hear it everywhere, and it will make you a little bit crazy. It takes away from the point the speaker is trying to make.
Remember a few years ago when the valley girl word, like, began to pop up in every conversation; in almost every sentence, sometimes several times? The more the word like was interjected, the less likely we were to understand what was being said. When we start paying attention to the word so leading a sentence, we will also stop hearing what is said right after we hear the offending word.
So is a versatile word. The accurate use of the word So can emphasize, as in “They are so happy!” Or to explain, as in “He was only three, so they excused his behavior”. It can mean approximately, such as, “She baked four dozen or so cookies.” Or it can mean also, “I’m finished, and so are you.” Or it might designate that everything is in the proper order, “Everything looked just so.” A child might use it to contradict a negative statement, “I did so give him his share of the candy.” There are so many more right ways to use this word, “If we use it inappropriately, so what?”
Misuse of a word (any word) diminishes the person misusing it. Those in the know will always recognize that the user either doesn’t know or doesn’t care, that they are not speaking correctly. Don’t dilute the thoughts you want to share in conversation, or in presentations, with distractions for the listener. Never start a sentence with the word, Soooo.