so to speak

Idioms  

1. Phrased like this, in a manner of speaking, as in He was, so to speak, the head of the family, although he was only related by marriage to most of the family members. This term originally meant “in the vernacular” or “lower-class language” and was used as an aristocrat's apology for stooping to such use. [Early 1800s] Also see as it were.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

so to speak

Equally fascinating was his pulling back the curtain, so to speak, on the culture of football, particularly the NFL, where the expectation for players is to follow orders and “shut up and play.”

From Salon ● Sep. 29, 2026

The rich are driving the economic bus, so to speak, and the rest of the country is just trying squeeze into the cheap seats.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026

But I’ll do my best to pull it off, so to speak.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 10, 2026

The car was in neutral, so to speak.

From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026

To honor Tony Judt’s memory, so to speak, let’s build a memory palace right here.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith