Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[puzzle]

Dear teachers,
Please help me with this question:
We can say"Time is running out.",but can we say "Time is giving out."? What's the difference between them?
Thank you very much!

[dragn]

Hi Puzzle,

Nope, you can only say time is running out. You can't say time is giving out.

Generally if something is running out, the supply of that thing is dwindling and will soon be used up; the amount available is steadily decreasing and is nearly gone. It can apply to basically anything that you have access to a finite supply of and can use. Using the continuous aspect (st is running out) tends to emphasize that the supply will be used up soon. Note that if you say something ran out, it's gone; there's none left. Many things can be running out:

My time is running out.
My money is running out.
My boss's patience is running out.
The world's oil is running out.

Usually if something is giving out, it is beginning to weaken and is nearly at the point of failure; it's starting to malfunction and will not operate much longer. Using the continuous aspect emphasizes that the failure or breakdown has not yet occurred, but probably will soon. Note that if you say something gave out, it's broken; it's no longer functioning; it can no longer sustain whatever it was designed to sustain. For example:

This beam is giving out; if it's not replaced soon the whole bridge may collapse.
My grandfather's heart is giving out; I'm afraid he won't be with us much longer.
Shaq's legs are giving out; I don't know if he'll make it through another season.
The copy machine is giving out; I can barely read these copies I just made.

One difference in usage between these two expressions is that not only can something be running out, but you can also be running out of something. You can't do this with giving out. For example:

I'm running out of time.
I'm running out of money.
My boss is running out of patience.
The world is running out of oil.

Now, there are a few situations where I've heard native speakers talk about something giving out where you'd normally expect them to say running out. In my own experience, it's done in a simple tense more often than in the continuous aspect; however, others' experience may vary. For example:

We'll stay until the beer gives out. (That is, until it runs out.)

Hope this helps.

Greg

[puzzle]

Dear Greg,
Thank you very much! Your answer really helps.
puzzle