sell out vs sell out of

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Tuongvan

#479546 Thu, 21 Feb 08 12:30 AM

Dear teachers,

Please explain whether there is any difference between sell out and sell out of in the sentences below:

1/ Sorry , We have sold out of these types of shirts

2/Sorry , We have sold out these types of shirts

By the way , please tell me whether these 2 sentences can be used interchangeably :

We are sold out of milk now = we have sold out of milk now

Thanks in advance

Tuongvan

Joined on Sun, Dec 30 2007

Regular Member (588)

van

Difference between

Avangi

#479554 Thu, 21 Feb 08 01:19 AM

The expressions are commonly used interchangeably in both these sets of examples.

Avangi

Joined on Mon, Nov 19 2007

Senior Member (3,297)

". . . le plaisir delicieux et toujours nouveau d'une occupation inutile." - Henri de Regnier

Expressions

Tuongvan

#479767 Thu, 21 Feb 08 12:26 PM

Hi Avangi,

Do you mean that :" Sorry , We have sold out of these types of shirts and "Sorry , We have sold out these types of shirts" can be used interchangeably ?

Kind regards

Tuongvan

Regards

Grammar Geek

#479802 Thu, 21 Feb 08 01:54 PM

Maybe there is regional variaton - We have sold out those shirts sound quite off to my ear.

We are out of those shirts.

We have sold out of those shirts.

Those shirts are [all] sold [out].

Grammar Geek

Joined on Tue, Jan 10 2006

Pennsylvania, USA

Veteran Member (15,622)

Barbara, who answers in American English.

Hoa Thai

#479856 Thu, 21 Feb 08 03:40 PM

Hi Barbara,

I think that the phrasal verb 'sell out' often go with 'of' to indicate every unit the seller had in stock of a certain product has been purchased by buyers.

However, sometimes without 'of', some sentences do sound better, for examples:

"We have sold out our inventory."

"We have sold out all our stock of T-shirts."

"We have sold out a development of 110 units."

It seems to me 'of' connotes 'every unit'. If we think in terms of 'group' / 'collective', 'of' should not be used.

Any comments?

Hoa Thai

Joined on Mon, Oct 15 2007

Vietnam

Contributing Member (1,100)

Best Regards - Hoa Thai

Verbs, Phrasal verbs

Avangi

#479861 Thu, 21 Feb 08 03:47 PM

Tuongvan
Hi Avangi,
Do you mean that :" Sorry , We have sold out of these types of shirts and "Sorry , We have sold out these types of shirts" can be used interchangeably ?

The one version I haven't yet seen vetted is "We are sold out of these shirts." (A.) Edit. (sorry!)

Kind regards

Hi Tuongvan, Yes, that's what I mean. The only thing which sounds unnatural (not often heard by me) is "these types of shirts."

Best wishes, - A.

Avangi

Regards

Avangi

#479877 Thu, 21 Feb 08 04:17 PM

I accidently stuck this in the wrong box and didn't have time to fix it: The one version I haven't yet seen vetted is "We are sold out of these shirts."

"Sorry, we're sold out," is probably the most common. Is "sold out" now called past participle of a phrasal verb?

Avangi

Verbs, Phrasal verbs

Yankee

#479901 Thu, 21 Feb 08 05:14 PM

The sentences in your last post sound odd to me, Hoa Thai

"We have sold out our inventory." This sounds a little awkward to me. Here are some alternatives:

We have sold all of our inventory (of red shirts).
Our inventory (of red shirts) is sold out.
Our red shirts are sold out.
We are (all/completely) sold out (of red shirts).

"We have sold out all our stock of T-shirts." I really don't like this sentence at all -- it sounds very awkward to me. The word 'all' would typically be used for extra emphasis and like the word 'completely' (i.e.as an adverb) in sentences using a structure similar to 'We are (all) sold out'. However, when sell out is used as a verb, then it only seems redundant to say "We sold out all of our stock of T-shirts". Use either 'out' of 'all of', but not both.

"We have sold out a development of 110 units." (Sorry, but I'm not sure I understand this sentence. Did you read it somewhere? Does it refer to a housing development?)

Yankee

Joined on Sat, Apr 15 2006

Connecticut, USA

Senior Member (4,157)

Amy "You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus." - Mark Twain

Verbs, Adverbs

Hoa Thai

#480047 Thu, 21 Feb 08 11:58 PM

Hi Amy,

Maybe 'frequent mistakes' is the mother of bad habits / uninformed usages. However, before I toss them into the trash can, I need to ask for your opinion on the following sentence from the New York Times:

"The Rangers have sold out all eight of their home games."

It does seem to violate all the rules that you mentioned; but I cannot resist from accepting it as anything other than natural.

By the way, regarding the 'development' sentence, I saw it in an all English real-estate magazine, in which a housing developing company mentioned how fast they'd sold out of the 110 units of the most sought-after condominium in Ho-Chi-Minh City.

Hoa Thai

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