Catalan result constructions point forward from a situation to its consequence: Plovia, així que ens vam quedar a casa (“It was raining, so we stayed home”). English often lets the single word so cover a factual consequence, an intended outcome, and an extreme degree. Catalan makes the relation clearer through the connector, the mood, and the position of words such as tan and tant.
The central contrast is between an actual result, normally presented with the indicative, and an intended result, which belongs to the domain of purpose and normally takes the subjunctive. The small linking words tell the listener whether the second clause is asserted as a fact or presented as a goal.
For the complementary relation that presents an intended outcome without first framing it as a consequence, see purpose conjunctions.
Choosing the construction
| Meaning | Catalan pattern | Mood | Typical register |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct factual consequence | així que + clause | Indicative | Neutral; very common in speech |
| Consequence described as an outcome | de manera que + clause | Indicative | Neutral to formal |
| Intended outcome | de manera que + clause | Subjunctive | Neutral; often instructional |
| High degree of an adjective or adverb | tan + adjective/adverb + que | Usually indicative for a fact | All registers |
| High quantity or intensity | tant + noun/verb + que | Usually indicative for a fact | All registers |
Així que: the everyday consequence
Així que introduces a consequence that the speaker treats as following naturally from the first clause. It corresponds to consequence so, not to purpose so that. It is neutral in contemporary speech and informal-to-neutral writing; in tightly argued (formal) prose, per tant or en conseqüència may be stylistically more suitable, but those are discourse connectors rather than subordinating conjunctions.
Demà hi ha vaga de trens, així que treballaré des de casa.
There is a train strike tomorrow, so I will work from home.
No m'agafava el telèfon, així que li he deixat un missatge.
She wasn't picking up the phone, so I left her a message.
The consequence can be negated or contain clitics without changing the connector. The clitic stays where the verb requires it; així que does not attract it.
La Júlia ja ho havia resolt, així que no li'n vam tornar a parlar.
Júlia had already solved it, so we did not speak to her about it again.
A comma normally separates two full clauses. When així que opens a new sentence or a conversational turn, it can instead organize the discourse: Així que… què decidim? (“So… what do we decide?”). That use leads to a question rather than expressing a literal result.
De manera que: actual result or intended outcome
With the indicative, de manera que presents the second clause as an actual consequence. It can sound slightly more measured than així que and is at home in neutral and (formal) explanations.
Van ajornar la reunió, de manera que tothom va poder revisar l'informe.
They postponed the meeting, with the result that everyone was able to review the report.
With the subjunctive, the same sequence can present the second clause as an outcome that someone arranges or intends. This overlaps with purpose. The difference is audible in the verb form.
Ajornarem la reunió, de manera que tothom pugui revisar l'informe.
We will postpone the meeting so that everyone can review the report.
Compare the minimal pair:
Va abaixar la persiana, de manera que no entrava gens de llum.
She lowered the blind, so no light was coming in. (Actual result: indicative.)
Va abaixar la persiana de manera que no entrés gens de llum.
She lowered the blind so that no light would come in. (Intended outcome: subjunctive.)
The comma helps the result reading because it sets off a comment on the preceding event. Without a comma, the phrase can attach more closely to the action and describe how it was carried out. Punctuation supports the meaning, but mood and context remain decisive.
Tan… que and tant… que: degree creates a result
Use tan before an adjective or adverb. It is invariable. The following que-clause gives the consequence of that extreme degree.
El passadís era tan estret que hi vam haver d'entrar d'un en un.
The corridor was so narrow that we had to go in one at a time.
Parlava tan de pressa que gairebé no l'entenia.
He spoke so fast that I could barely understand him.
Use tant with a verb, where it is invariable, or before a noun, where it agrees: tant temps, tanta calor, tants correus, tantes preguntes.
Va ploure tant que el riu es va desbordar.
It rained so much that the river overflowed.
Hi havia tanta boira que, des del mirador, el castell no es veia.
There was so much fog that, from the viewpoint, the castle could not be seen.
That last example contains a reordered constituent: des del mirador is moved inside the result clause. The scope remains clear because tanta boira belongs to the first clause and que opens its consequence.
Negation and scope
Negation can apply to the cause, to the result, or to the degree expression. These meanings are not interchangeable.
No va avisar ningú, així que no el van esperar.
He did not notify anyone, so they did not wait for him.
No estava tan cansada que no pogués continuar.
She was not so tired that she could not continue.
In the second sentence, no denies that the degree reached the threshold expressed by the result clause. The subjunctive pogués is natural because the denied consequence is not asserted as an actual event. By contrast, Estava tan cansada que no podia continuar asserts a real consequence and uses the indicative.
A natural dialogue
—Se'ns ha espatllat la cafetera, així que avui baixarem al bar. —Doncs baixem-hi d'hora, de manera que trobem taula. —Sí; ahir hi havia tanta gent que ens vam haver d'esperar vint minuts.
—Our coffee machine has broken, so today we'll go down to the café. —Then let's go early so that we get a table. —Yes; yesterday there were so many people that we had to wait twenty minutes.
The first result is factual planning based on a fact (així que + indicative). The second is an intended outcome (de manera que + subjunctive). The third reports an actual consequence of a large quantity (tanta gent que + indicative).
Regional and register guidance
The constructions taught here are standard across Central, Valencian, Balearic, Northwestern, Northern, and Alguerese Catalan. Pronunciation and preferred everyday alternatives vary, but the syntax does not require a regional label. (formal) IEC and AVL usage both accept així que and de manera que. Do not replace Catalan així que mechanically with Spanish así que inside otherwise Catalan prose; the spelling and pronunciation are Catalan, and de manera que, not Spanish de modo que, is the safest pan-Catalan instructional baseline.
Short correction task
Correct each sentence before reading the answer.
- Feia tanta fred que no vam sortir.
- Tanca bé la finestra, de manera que no entra aire. (intended outcome)
- El tren es va cancel·lar, per això que vam agafar l'autobús.
Feia tant de fred que no vam sortir.
It was so cold that we did not go out. (With the fixed expression fer fred, use tant de.)
Tanca bé la finestra, de manera que no entri aire.
Close the window properly so that no air comes in. (Intended outcome: subjunctive.)
El tren es va cancel·lar, així que vam agafar l'autobús.
The train was cancelled, so we took the bus. (Do not create the Spanish-influenced sequence per això que.)
Common Mistakes
❌ Estava tant cansat que se'n va anar al llit.
Incorrect — tant does not modify an adjective.
✅ Estava tan cansat que se'n va anar al llit.
He was so tired that he went to bed.
❌ Teníem tan feina que no vam dinar.
Incorrect — a noun requires agreeing tant, not tan.
✅ Teníem tanta feina que no vam dinar.
We had so much work that we did not have lunch.
❌ Ho escriuré ben clar, de manera que tothom ho entén.
Incorrect for an intended future outcome — the understanding is a goal, not an asserted fact.
✅ Ho escriuré ben clar, de manera que tothom ho entengui.
I will write it very clearly so that everyone understands it.
❌ Va caure tanta pluja així que el carrer es va inundar.
Incorrect — this blends two complete result patterns and leaves tanta pluja without its que-clause.
✅ Va caure tanta pluja que el carrer es va inundar.
So much rain fell that the street flooded.
Key Takeaways
- Use així que for a direct, factual consequence.
- With de manera que, the indicative reports an actual result and the subjunctive presents an intended outcome.
- Use invariable tan before adjectives and adverbs; use tant with verbs and agreeing tant/tanta/tants/tantes before nouns.
- Do not translate every English so with the same Catalan expression: identify result, purpose, degree, and scope first.
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