ところで

About

ところで can be used in a similar way to "by the way" in English and is used to switch topics, usually when the speaker suddenly thinks of a new topic, based on something they thought of, or something that was said.

E.g. ところで、頼たのんだピザは買かってきてくれた？ "By the way, did you buy the pizza I asked for?"

ところで can also introduce a tangentially related topic, rather than a completely new one.

E.g. 夏休なつやすみがもうすぐ終おわるね。ところで、夏休なつやすみの宿題しゅくだいは全部ぜんぶ終おわった？ "Summer vacation will be over soon hey. By the way, did you finish all the homework that was assigned for summer break?"

Summary

• 

  ところで is similar to "by the way" in English

• 

  ところで is generally used to switch topics

• 

  ところで can introduce a brand new topic, or one that is tangentially related to a previous discussion