Is there any difference between そこで and それで?


I know that they can both mean "so, therefore, because of that" etc., so what
is the difference when I use them with that meaning?




I wll try to explain this without **_translating_** the words themselves as, I
feel, wanting to translate should be the major reason that you are
experiencing difficulty in understanding these words.

> 「それで」 is generally used to express a simple "cause and effect" relationship
> between two events or situations. **_"B happens as a (natural) result of
> A."_** It is close to 「ですから」 in meaning.

「ウィスキーを[一本飲]{いっぽんの}んだ。 **それで** [頭]{あたま}が[痛]{いた}い。」 Drinking a whole bottle of
whiskey has caused your headache.

「[朝]{あさ}から[大雨]{おおあめ}です。 **それで** ピクニックを[中止]{ちゅうし}しました。[残念]{ざんねん}です。」 Heavy rain
since morning has caused the cancellation of the picnic.

> 「そこで」 is used to describe an action that is performed in response to an
> existing situation. **_"Measure B is taken to solve/alleviate Situation
> A."_**

「[日本語]{にほんご}のテストで40[点]{てん}しか[取]{と}れなかった。 **そこで**
[勉強方法]{べんきょうほうほう}を[変]{か}えてみたら、70点取れた。」 You had done poorly on the previous
test. This time, you tried a new method of studying and it worked.

「[社員]{しゃいん}が[増]{ふ}え、オフィスが[狭]{せま}くなった。 **そこで**
[今]{いま}より[大]{おお}きいオフィスを[探]{さが}すことにしました。」 The fact that you have more employees
now and it is making the office feel too small **necessitates** searching for
a new space to rent.

Finally, there will be cases where the distinction is not as clear as one
would like it to be. My last sentence about office space is an example of
that. In those cases, the speaker/writer would need to decide which one would
better express what s/he wanted to express.

Generally speaking, it would look or sound like a bigger mistake to use そこで
where それで should be used than to go the other way around.




I wll try to explain this without **_translating_** the words themselves as, I
feel, wanting to translate should be the major reason that you are
experiencing difficulty in understanding these words.

> 「それで」 is generally used to express a simple "cause and effect" relationship
> between two events or situations. **_"B happens as a (natural) result of
> A."_** It is close to 「ですから」 in meaning.

「ウィスキーを[一本飲]{いっぽんの}んだ。 **それで** [頭]{あたま}が[痛]{いた}い。」 Drinking a whole bottle of
whiskey has caused your headache.

「[朝]{あさ}から[大雨]{おおあめ}です。 **それで** ピクニックを[中止]{ちゅうし}しました。[残念]{ざんねん}です。」 Heavy rain
since morning has caused the cancellation of the picnic.

> 「そこで」 is used to describe an action that is performed in response to an
> existing situation. **_"Measure B is taken to solve/alleviate Situation
> A."_**

「[日本語]{にほんご}のテストで40[点]{てん}しか[取]{と}れなかった。 **そこで**
[勉強方法]{べんきょうほうほう}を[変]{か}えてみたら、70点取れた。」 You had done poorly on the previous
test. This time, you tried a new method of studying and it worked.

「[社員]{しゃいん}が[増]{ふ}え、オフィスが[狭]{せま}くなった。 **そこで**
[今]{いま}より[大]{おお}きいオフィスを[探]{さが}すことにしました。」 The fact that you have more employees
now and it is making the office feel too small **necessitates** searching for
a new space to rent.

Finally, there will be cases where the distinction is not as clear as one
would like it to be. My last sentence about office space is an example of
that. In those cases, the speaker/writer would need to decide which one would
better express what s/he wanted to express.

Generally speaking, it would look or sound like a bigger mistake to use そこで
where それで should be used than to go the other way around.

