So that 和 in order that 都是用來表示目的，意為「為了；以便；目的在於」，當連接詞用，通常與語氣助動詞 (can、will、could、would 等) 連用。So that 比 in order that 來得常用許多，在非正式情況中，so that 中的 that 往往省略。In order that 是個正式用語，通常用於正式場合。例如：
- John lowered his voice to tell me the secret so that no one would hear. (約翰壓低嗓音告訴我這個秘密，這樣就沒有人能聽到)
- Mary got up early in order that she should/would/might be on time for school. (瑪麗一早就起床以便準時上學)
- I’ll go there so that I can talk to the president. (我要去那裡，這樣我才能跟總統談話)
- In order that you can sign the contract, please give me your address and I will mail it to you. (為了讓你能夠簽約，請給我你的地址，我會把合約寄給你)
- Thomas worked hard so (that) he would earn one million dollars before the age of 25. (湯瑪斯努力工作俾在 25 歲之前能賺到 100 萬)
- I’ve made some sushi so (that) you can have a snack with your girlfriend. (我做了一些壽司，這樣你就能跟你女朋友一起吃點心)