Averíamos

Averiar is a Spanish verb meaning to damage or cause a malfunction in machinery, equipment, or systems, rendering them unusable or less functional. It is most commonly used for mechanical failures in vehicles, engines, electronics, and industrial equipment. The related noun avería denotes a fault, defect, or breakdown in a device or system; the adjective averiado describes something that is damaged or out of order.

Averiar comes from the regular -ar verb family. "Averíamos" (with the accent on the i) is the first-person plural form of the conditional mood: nosotros averiaríamos, meaning "we would damage." This form is used to express hypothetical outcomes or actions depending on a condition, often in conditional clauses (si...). Example: "Con ese manejo descuidado, averiaríamos la maquinaria." The imperfect subjunctive forms would be "averiáramos" or "averiásemos," not "averíamos."

A typical usage note: use averiar for describing damage or malfunction that renders equipment inoperable. The reflexive "averiarse" describes a device or system experiencing a fault, as in "la máquina se averió" (the machine broke down). In everyday language, synonyms include dañar and estropear, depending on register and precision.

See also: avería; averiarse; fallo; malfuncionamiento.