Sentence:  However , as so <WSD>many</WSD> of the records are not certainly based on newborn snakes , these data must be taken tentatively ; final conclusions will have to await the measurements of broods from definite localities . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by `as' or `too' or `so' or `that'; amounting to a large but indefinite number