How do you say “Blow a fuse” in Spanish?
The closest natural Spanish equivalent is salirse de sus casillas, which literally means “to leave one's squares”. English speakers use blow a fuse to mean to suddenly lose your temper. An established Spanish expression for losing your temper. It does not copy the electrical image. Register: informal. Usage frequency: common.
Closest natural Spanish
salirse de sus casillas
/saˈliɾse ðe sus kaˈsiʝas/
- Literal meaning
- “to leave one's squares”
- Register
- informal
- How often it's used
- common
- Equivalence
Near-exact equivalent
95 out of 100
What a native Spanish speaker would actually say
The small “casillas” are squares or compartments. In this expression, leaving them means losing your usual self-control.
Change “sus” with the person: “me salí de mis casillas”. “Sacar a alguien de sus casillas” instead means making someone else lose their temper.
How close is the meaning?
- Meaning5 out of 5
- Tone5 out of 5
- Context5 out of 5
- Literal similarity2 out of 5
These ratings are editorial approximations, not measurements.
In context
English
Dad blew a fuse when he saw the dent in his car.
Spanish
Papá se salió de sus casillas al ver la abolladura en su coche.
English
When the neighbours started drilling at six, I blew a fuse.
Spanish
Cuando los vecinos empezaron a taladrar a las seis, me salí de mis casillas.
Related expressions
Last updated 2026-10-01