256 / 308
それはそう sore wa sou
Well, yes. Obviously.
What does sore wa sou mean?
Conceding a point that was never in dispute. Agreement and a raised eyebrow delivered in the same four syllables.
Example
「寝ないと眠いよ」「それはそう」
'You'll be tired if you don't sleep.' 'Well, yes, obviously.'
Vibe
Who you can say this to, and how it lands.
Friends only Casual. Natural with friends, out of place at work or with strangers.
The story behind sore wa sou
Grammatically それはそう is a sentence with its ending amputated. The full form would be それはそうだ, and dropping the copula is what gives the phrase its shrug. It became a standard reply on Japanese Twitter through the 2010s, in the corner of the internet where people enjoy arguing carefully and then admitting defeat in four syllables.
Use it when someone states something unarguable, especially if they state it as though it were an insight. You are agreeing and quietly noting that no information was transmitted. Do not confuse it with それはそうと, which sounds almost identical but means anyway, changing the subject. One accepts the point, the other walks away from it.
Get sore wa sou in your pocket
それはそう is one of 308 words in YABAI, a Japanese culture snack for Android. Every word comes with its meaning, an example sentence, a vibe check and a story like the one above — in 13 languages, read aloud by your device. Paid app: no ads, no sign-up, no subscription.
