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Fill in /Fill out?

Posted: Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:12 am
by cftranslate
Can anybody briefly explain with clear examples the difference?

Do you fill in a questionnaire / the questions in a poll or survey or you fill it out?

(Well I know one fills in spaces to complete sentences in a grammar exercise)

Thanks

Posted: Sun Nov 07, 2004 10:22 am
by Stephen Jones
Both

Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2004 5:48 pm
by LarryLatham
Indeed both, but the meanings are not precisely the same.

One can imagine that the girl who fills out the questionaire is completing it. Making it whole.

On the other hand, the guy who fills it in is putting words into the blanks.

Same activity, different perception (or point-of-view) on the part of the narrator who is describing the activity. :wink:

Larry Latham