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

"When you compare the games in the past and the games in modern times, so to speak, the norms of what people expect from a game have evolved naturally," Nintendo producer Hidemaro Fujibayashi told me.

From BBC ● Nov. 8, 2026

"We're able to go around the edge. So, we've gone from a ring to understanding where on the ring the gemstones are, so to speak."

From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026

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

Madame Ionesco swung her legs until they kicked the bucket, so to speak.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

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