Troubleshooting a Washing Machine Problem | Learn Spanish in English

Sentence explanations

1. La lavadora se detuvo a mitad del ciclo.

   The washing machine stopped halfway through the cycle.

   lavadora

   washing machine

   se detuvo

   stopped

   a mitad de

   halfway through

   ciclo

   cycle

   More detail

   lavadora means “washing machine” here. It is a feminine singular noun: la lavadora means “the washing machine.” The ending -a is part of this noun and does not mean that the machine is a female person. Example: La lavadora funciona. — “The washing machine works.” se detuvo means “stopped.” The verb is detenerse, “to stop,” and detuvo is its third-person singular preterite form, matching the singular subject la lavadora. In this use, se is part of the pronominal form detenerse; it presents the machine as coming to a stop, not as stopping some separate object. The preterite presents the stopping as a completed event. Example: El motor se detuvo. — “The engine stopped.” a mitad de is a reusable pattern meaning “halfway through” or “in the middle of.” It introduces the point within an event or process where something occurs. In the sentence, de is followed by el ciclo, and the two words contract to del: de + el = del. Example: Se fue a mitad de la película. — “They left halfway through the movie.” ciclo means “cycle.” With el, el ciclo refers to the cycle as a masculine singular noun. Here it is the cycle being run by the washing machine; the sentence does not specify a different kind of cycle. Together, La lavadora is the subject, se detuvo says that it stopped, and a mitad del ciclo specifies when in the process this happened. The complete meaning is: “The washing machine stopped halfway through the cycle.”

2. ¿Hay algún aviso en la pantalla?

   Is there a warning on the screen?

   Hay

   there is / there are

   aviso

   warning

   pantalla

   screen

   More detail

   Hay is the impersonal form used to say that something exists or is present: “there is” or “there are.” It does not change for singular versus plural: Hay un aviso = “There is a warning,” and Hay varios avisos = “There are several warnings.” In a question, the same form appears with interrogative intonation and punctuation: ¿Hay un filtro? = “Is there a filter?” aviso means “warning” here. It is a masculine singular noun; its plural is avisos. The word algún before it is the masculine singular form of the indefinite determiner alguno, meaning “some” or “any” in this question. Compare algún aviso with feminine singular alguna señal and plural algunos avisos. pantalla means “screen.” It is a feminine singular noun, and its plural is pantallas. The phrase en la pantalla means “on the screen”: en introduces the location, and la agrees with feminine singular pantalla. For example, El mensaje aparece en la pantalla. means “The message appears on the screen.” Together, ¿Hay algún aviso asks whether any warning exists or is present, and en la pantalla specifies the location. The complete utterance means “Is there a warning on the screen?”

3. Dice que el filtro puede estar obstruido.

   It says the filter may be blocked.

   Dice

   says

   el filtro

   the filter

   puede

   may

   estar

   be

   obstruido

   blocked

   More detail

   Dice is the present-tense third-person singular form of decir (“to say”): dice = “says.” The subject is not identified in this sentence; the fixed translation supports “it says” without specifying what “it” refers to. Example: El manual dice que funciona. — “The manual says that it works.” el filtro means “the filter.” Filtro is a masculine singular noun, so the article is el. The article marks grammatical gender and number here; it does not by itself add a numeric claim. Example: El filtro está limpio. — “The filter is clean.” puede is the third-person singular present form of poder, “can” or “may.” With an infinitive, puede + infinitive expresses possibility or ability; here it expresses possibility: “may be.” Example: La pantalla puede fallar. — “The screen may fail.” estar is the infinitive “to be.” After the modal puede, Spanish uses the infinitive: puede estar = “may be.” Estar is also commonly used for a state or condition, contrasting with ser in contexts where the sentence describes what something is rather than its current condition. Example: La puerta puede estar cerrada. — “The door may be closed.” obstruido means “blocked” or “obstructed” here. It is the masculine singular form of the adjective or past participle obstruido, from the verb obstruir, and it agrees with masculine singular el filtro. The combination estar + obstruido describes the filter’s condition. Example: La entrada está obstruida. — “The entrance is blocked.” Here obstruida is feminine singular because it agrees with la entrada. Together, Dice que introduces the content of what is said: “It says that.” Puede estar obstruido expresses a possible condition: “may be blocked.” The whole utterance is therefore: “It says the filter may be blocked.”

4. Consulta el manual antes de pulsar botones al azar.

   Check the manual before trying random buttons.

   Consulta

   check

   manual

   manual

   antes de

   before

   pulsar

   press

   botones

   buttons

   al azar

   at random

   More detail

   Consulta is the affirmative command form of consultar for tú singular: “check” or “consult.” It addresses one person informally. The same spelling can also be a noun meaning “consultation,” but here its position as the clause’s main verb and the intended translation show the command use. manual is a masculine singular noun meaning “manual.” In Spanish, the definite article would be el manual; the noun itself is singular here. Example: Leo el manual. — “I read the manual.” antes de introduces something that happens earlier: “before.” It is followed here by an infinitive, so the reusable pattern is antes de + infinitive. pulsar is an infinitive meaning “to press” or “to click.” After antes de, it stays in the infinitive rather than taking a personal ending. Example: Antes de pulsar, lee la pantalla. — “Before pressing, read the screen.” botones means “buttons.” Its singular base form is botón; the plural is formed with -es: botón → botones. The accent is not retained in the plural because the plural spelling follows Spanish stress rules. Here it is the object of pulsar. al azar is a compact expression meaning “at random.” It describes an action performed without selecting according to a known method or order. Example: No pulses botones al azar. — “Do not press buttons at random.” Together, Consulta el manual gives the command “Check the manual,” and antes de pulsar botones al azar specifies that this should happen before pressing buttons randomly. The whole utterance therefore means: “Check the manual before trying random buttons.”

5. El manual dice que debo limpiar el filtro con cuidado.

   The manual says I should clean the filter carefully.

   manual

   manual

   dice

   says

   debo

   I should

   limpiar

   to clean

   filtro

   filter

   con cuidado

   carefully

   More detail

   manual means “manual” here. It is a masculine noun, as shown by el manual; its plural is manuales: Los manuales explican el procedimiento. — “The manuals explain the procedure.” dice is the third-person singular present form of decir, “to say” or “to tell.” Here the subject is el manual, so Spanish uses singular dice. A useful pattern is X dice que... (“X says that...”): La etiqueta dice que no se debe abrir. — “The label says that it should not be opened.” debo is the first-person singular present form of deber, whose base form is deber. With an infinitive, deber + infinitive expresses what the speaker should or must do; here debo limpiar means “I should clean.” The ending -o identifies the first-person singular present form in this verb. Debo esperar. — “I should wait.” limpiar is an infinitive meaning “to clean.” After debo, it stays in the infinitive rather than taking a separate person ending: Debes limpiar el filtro. — “You should clean the filter.” filtro means “filter.” It is a masculine noun, as shown by el filtro; its plural is filtros: Cambio los filtros. — “I change the filters.” con cuidado is a manner expression meaning “carefully” or literally “with care.” Con is followed here by the noun cuidado; the whole expression describes how the cleaning should be done. Abre la caja con cuidado. — “Open the box carefully.” Together, El manual dice que introduces what the manual states, debo limpiar el filtro says that the speaker should clean the filter, and con cuidado specifies the manner. The complete meaning is: “The manual says I should clean the filter carefully.”

6. Después, desenchufa la máquina antes de tocar nada.

   Then unplug the machine before you touch anything.

   Después

   then; afterward

   desenchufa

   unplug

   la máquina

   the machine

   antes de

   before doing something

   tocar

   touch

   nada

   anything

   More detail

   Después means “then” or “afterward” and places this step after the earlier action. It is also common in después de + noun and después de + infinitive, as in después de limpiar (“after cleaning”). desenchufa is the affirmative command form of desenchufar (“to unplug”) for tú, one familiar or informal listener. The ending -a here marks a tú command; it is not the formal singular command desenchufe or the plural command desenchufen. Example: Desenchufa el cable. — “Unplug the cable.” la máquina means “the machine.” Máquina is a feminine singular noun, so the definite article is la; its plural is las máquinas. The article identifies a particular machine in this instruction, without stating that there is only one machine in existence. antes de introduces something that must happen earlier: “before.” When the following action has the same understood actor, Spanish commonly uses antes de + infinitive, as in antes de salir (“before leaving”). tocar is the infinitive “to touch.” Here it follows antes de, so antes de tocar means “before touching.” Example: Lávate las manos antes de tocar la comida. — “Wash your hands before touching the food.” nada means “anything” here. In antes de tocar nada, the expression means “before touching anything”; the preceding antes de creates a context in which nada can have this negative-polarity meaning without a separate no. In a negative clause, nada also appears with no, as in No veo nada. — “I don’t see anything.” Together, Después, desenchufa la máquina gives the next instruction: “Then unplug the machine.” antes de tocar nada sets the timing condition: the unplugging must happen before the listener touches anything. The complete utterance is therefore: “Then unplug the machine before you touch anything.”

7. Después de eso, ¿debería reiniciar el ciclo?

   After that, should I restart the cycle?

   Después de eso

   after that

   debería

   should

   reiniciar

   restart

   ciclo

   cycle

   More detail

   Después de eso means “after that.” Después places the action later in time, and eso is the neuter demonstrative pronoun “that,” referring here to an already established event or situation. The fixed translation identifies the intended sequence without specifying a new noun referent. debería is the conditional form of deber. In this question, the fixed translation shows the intended first-person meaning: “should I.” The form debería can also serve as a third-person singular form; the implicit subject here is understood from the translation and question context. Deber followed by an infinitive expresses what someone ought to do: debería + infinitive = “should ….” reiniciar is the infinitive “to restart” or “to restart again.” After debería, Spanish uses the infinitive: debería reiniciar = “should I restart.” Example: Debería reiniciar la máquina. — “I should restart the machine.” ciclo is the masculine singular noun “cycle.” Its article would be el: el ciclo. Example: El ciclo terminó. — “The cycle ended.” Together, Después de eso sets the time, debería reiniciar asks whether the speaker ought to perform the restart, and el ciclo identifies what is to be restarted. The whole utterance means: “After that, should I restart the cycle?”

8. Reinícialo una vez, pero ponte en contacto con mantenimiento si vuelve a aparecer el aviso.

   Restart it once, but contact maintenance if the warning returns.

   Reinícialo

   restart it

   una vez

   once

   ponte en contacto con

   get in touch with

   mantenimiento

   maintenance

   vuelve a aparecer

   appears again

   aviso

   warning

   More detail

   Reinícialo is the affirmative tú command of reiniciar (“to restart”) with the direct-object pronoun lo attached. The accent mark preserves the required stress after the pronoun is added. The pronoun means “it” here, but the fixed sentence does not identify what “it” refers to. Example: Reinicia el equipo. — “Restart the equipment.” una vez means “once,” so it limits the restarting to one time. It expresses the number of repetitions, not the identity of the object. ponte en contacto con is a reusable way to say “get in contact with” or “contact.” Ponte is the affirmative tú command of the reflexive verb ponerse, and en contacto con completes the expression. Example: Ponte en contacto con soporte. — “Contact support.” mantenimiento is the noun “maintenance.” In this sentence it names the service or team to contact. Example: El mantenimiento revisa la máquina. — “Maintenance checks the machine.” vuelve a aparecer uses volver a + infinitive to express repetition: “appear again.” Vuelve is the third-person singular present form of volver, and aparecer is the infinitive. Here the subject is el aviso, so the singular form agrees with it. Example: El mensaje vuelve a aparecer. — “The message appears again.” aviso is a masculine noun; with the article it appears as el aviso. Here it means “warning.” Its plural is avisos. Example: El aviso aparece otra vez. — “The warning appears again.” Together, Reinícialo una vez gives the instruction “Restart it once.” pero introduces a contrasting instruction: ponte en contacto con mantenimiento. The condition si vuelve a aparecer el aviso means “if the warning appears again”; si introduces the condition, and the repeated-event pattern volver a + infinitive describes the warning’s reappearance. The complete meaning is: “Restart it once, but contact maintenance if the warning returns.”

9. Primero seguiré los pasos seguros.

   I will follow the safe steps first.

   Primero

   first

   seguiré

   I will follow

   pasos

   steps

   seguros

   safe

   More detail

   Primero means “first” and places this action before other actions in the intended sequence. It can also appear later in a sentence: Lee las instrucciones primero = “Read the instructions first.” seguiré is the first-person singular future form of seguir, “to follow.” The ending -é identifies “I” in this future form: seguiré = “I will follow.” In this sentence, seguir means following steps or instructions, not physically accompanying someone. Compare sigo = “I follow / I am following” and seguí = “I followed.” pasos is the plural of the masculine noun paso, “step.” Here it refers to steps in a procedure. The singular and plural contrast is un paso / los pasos. seguros means “safe” here and describes pasos. It is the masculine plural form of seguro, agreeing with masculine plural pasos: un paso seguro / pasos seguros. The adjective can have other meanings in other contexts, but here the fixed translation supports the safety-related meaning. Together, Primero places the action first, seguiré says that the speaker will do it, and los pasos seguros identifies the steps to be followed. The complete meaning is: “I will follow the safe steps first.”

10. Resolver problemas sencillos es útil, pero no te arriesgues a dañar la máquina.

    Simple troubleshooting is useful, but do not risk damaging the machine.

    Resolver

    to solve

    problemas

    problems

    sencillos

    simple

    útil

    useful

    no te arriesgues

    do not risk it

    dañar

    to damage

    máquina

    machine

    More detail

    Resolver is the infinitive “to solve.” Here it acts as the subject of the first clause, so the sentence begins literally with “To solve…”. The same form is useful after many verbs and expressions: quiero resolver = “I want to solve.” problemas means “problems.” It is the plural of problema; despite ending in -a, this noun is masculine, as shown by problemas sencillos. sencillos means “simple” here and describes problemas. It is the masculine plural form of sencillo: sencillo, sencilla, sencillos, sencillas, matching the noun in gender and number. Example: tareas sencillas = “simple tasks.” útil means “useful.” The adjective is singular here because it describes the whole infinitive clause Resolver problemas sencillos, not the plural noun problemas. Its form does not change between masculine and feminine singular: un consejo útil / una herramienta útil. Its plural is útiles. no te arriesgues means “do not risk it” in this sentence. arriesgarse a + infinitive is the reusable pattern for “to risk doing something,” as in No te arriesgues a correr = “Don’t risk running.” The negative command is addressed to one tú: te is the reflexive pronoun, and arriesgues is the present-subjunctive command form used with no. The negative word no reverses the command; it does not belong to the meaning of dañar. dañar is the infinitive “to damage.” After arriesgarse a, it names the action that would involve the risk: No te arriesgues a dañar... = “Don’t risk damaging...” Example: No te arriesgues a perder el archivo = “Don’t risk losing the file.” With arriesgarse, the reflexive form is te arriesgues for tú. máquina means “machine.” The article la before it marks this noun as feminine singular; máquina has the plural máquinas. In this sentence, la máquina is the thing that could be damaged. Together, Resolver problemas sencillos es útil means “Solving simple problems is useful.” pero introduces a contrast, and no te arriesgues a dañar la máquina means “but do not risk damaging the machine.” The complete utterance therefore advises that simple troubleshooting is useful while giving a direct negative command not to risk damaging the machine.