fuera de servicio
/fweɾa de seɾbiθjo/from spelling rules
The English phrase "out of order" is translated into Spanish as fuera de servicio.
fuera de servicio is used to indicate that something is not functioning properly.
Meaning: not functioning properly (prep_phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of fuera (outside), de (of) and servicio (service), literally meaning "outside of service".
Which one should you use?
While fuera de servicio implies a state of being unavailable for use, averiado specifically implies that something has suffered a mechanical breakdown or fault.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase is an adverbial phrase and does not change its form for gender or number, even if the subject is plural or feminine.
How do you pronounce it?
/fweɾa de seɾbiθjo/
Did you know?
- The word fuera in this phrase shares a distant ancestor with the English word 'door'.
- While fuera de servicio describes a machine, Spanish uses fuera de combate to describe a person who is 'out of order' in the sense of being knocked out or incapacitated.
- While English speakers use 'order' to describe a machine's status, Spanish speakers conceptualize the same state through the lens of 'service' (servicio).
Examples in context
- El aire acondicionado está fuera de servicio.The air conditioner is out of order.This sentence shows how to use fuera de servicio to describe an air conditioner.Tatoeba #1193261 by marcelostockle, translation #65593 by CK
- Desafortunadamente, el teléfono estaba fuera de servicio.Unfortunately, the telephone was out of order.This sentence illustrates using fuera de servicio in the context of a telephone.Tatoeba #1207825 by marcelostockle, translation #26622 by CK
- La máquina ha estado fuera de servicio desde el mes pasado.The machine has been out of order since last month.This sentence demonstrates how to express that a machine has been fuera de servicio over a period of time.Tatoeba #1612623 by teskmon, translation #48812 by sundown
- La máquina de café no funcionaThe coffee machine is not working
- El elevador está descompuestoThe elevator is broken
- 6 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Sofía and Alejandro are at a train station.
- SofíaEl cajero automático está fuera de servicio.The ATM is out of order.
- AlejandroQué mal, necesito sacar dinero ahora.That's too bad, I need to withdraw money now.
- SofíaHay otro cajero más adelante.There is another ATM further ahead.
- AlejandroGracias, Sofía, iré a buscarlo.Thanks, Sofía, I'll go look for it.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “out of order” translations and entries fuera de servicio, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries de, fuera, servicio, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
