Is there a multimodal construction based on non-deictic so in German?

The existence of multimodal constructions is highly disputed. One of the most straightforward examples of such constructions includes deictics, among them the German manner adverbial so ('like this') (cf. Stukenbrock 2014a, Take the words out of my mouth: Verbal instructions as embodied practices. Journal of Pragmatics 65. 80-102, 2015, Deixis in der Face-to-Face-Interaktion. Berlin, Munchen & Boston: De Gruyter), whose deictic use requires a constellation of grammatical, prosodic and gestural as well as gaze-related features. While this multimodal construction is uncontroversial, this paper tests (and refutes) the broader claim that German so is regularly accompanied by gestures (Streeck 2002: 582, Grammars, words, and embodied meanings. On the evolution and uses of so and like. Journal of Communication 52(3). 581-596). We show that non-stressed, non-deictic so can but need not be coupled with an iconic gesture and hence doesn't qualify as a multimodal construction.