Dictionary

sew buttons en · INTJ

Pronunciation

• (US) audio

Etymology

Based on the fact that so and sew are homophonous.

Meanings

1. (humorous, idiomatic, qualifier:slightly dated) Used in response to someone asking "so?"
   • “That's what my mother used to say when we kept saying 'so.'” At Jack's puzzled look I bat my hand at him. “Don't bother trying to get it. It's a non sequitur.” “Oh. So. Sew buttons. I get it.” 2016, Rita Lakin, Getting Old is Criminal:
   • “Ah. So?” “Sew buttons.” “What was it like? I don't know. 2018, Lisa Super, chapter 13, in So Glad to Meet You:
   • “So.” “Sew buttons.” That phrase always made Cam laugh. Her grandmother was the only one who still used it because she was probably the only person who still actually sewed buttons. 2012, Wendy Wunder, The Probability of Miracles, Penguin Random House Children's UK:
2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see sew, button.

Forms