The Sink Is Leaking in Spanish | Say It Like A Local

The most natural Spanish phrasing is “El fregadero tiene una fuga” or “El lavabo gotea,” depending on the place and the kind of leak.

You don’t need one fixed sentence for every Spanish-speaking country. The right line changes with the room, the region, and the kind of problem. A kitchen sink, a bathroom sink, a slow drip, and a pipe leak can all call for slightly different wording.

If you want a phrase that sounds natural and gets the job done, start with this:

• El fregadero tiene una fuga. — The kitchen sink has a leak.
• El lavabo gotea. — The bathroom sink is dripping.
• Hay una fuga debajo del fregadero. — There’s a leak under the sink.
• El grifo gotea. — The faucet is dripping.

That split matters. In many homes, people aren’t talking about the whole sink at all. They mean the faucet, the drain, or the pipe below it. If you say the wrong part, the other person may still grasp you, but your Spanish will sound less natural than it could.

The Sink Is Leaking in Spanish At Home And On The Go

For everyday use, two verbs do most of the heavy lifting:

• Gotea means it’s dripping.
• Tiene una fuga means it has a leak.

Gotea works well when water falls drop by drop. That matches the sense given by the RAE entry for “gotear”, which defines it as falling in drops. If the sink is making that steady tick-tick sound at night, gotea is often the cleanest choice.

Tiene una fuga fits a broader leak. Water may be escaping from a pipe, a seal, or the base of the sink. The RAE entry for “fuga” ties the word to accidental escape of liquid through an opening. That makes it a strong pick when the leak is more than a drip.

So if you’re standing in a rental apartment and water is pooling under the cabinet, don’t stop at gotea. Say hay una fuga or tiene una fuga. It’s more precise, and it sounds like you know what you mean.

Which noun Should You Use For “Sink”?

This is where learners get tripped up. English uses “sink” for a lot of situations. Spanish splits that idea across several words.

• Fregadero — common for a kitchen sink in Spain and many other settings.
• Lavabo — common for a bathroom sink.
• Lavamanos — also used for a bathroom sink or hand-washing sink in many places.
• Pileta — common in parts of Latin America, though meaning shifts by country.
• Lavaplatos — used in some countries for kitchen sink.

The RAE entry for “fregadero” ties it to the sink used for washing up, which is why it feels right in a kitchen. If you say el lavabo in a kitchen in Spain, people may still get you, but it can sound off.

That’s why a single translation like “el sink está goteando” misses the mark. It borrows English, skips the region issue, and leaves the listener guessing about the real problem.

Best Natural Translations By Situation

Use the sentence that matches what the water is doing. That gives you Spanish that sounds sharper and gets faster results from a plumber, hotel clerk, host, or neighbor.

English Meaning	Natural Spanish	Best Use
The sink is leaking	El fregadero tiene una fuga.	Kitchen sink, broad leak
The bathroom sink is leaking	El lavabo tiene una fuga.	Bathroom sink, broad leak
The sink is dripping	El fregadero gotea.	Slow drip from sink area
The faucet is dripping	El grifo gotea.	Leak from faucet only
There’s a leak under the sink	Hay una fuga debajo del fregadero.	Cabinet or pipe leak
The pipe under the sink is leaking	La tubería debajo del fregadero tiene una fuga.	Clear plumbing issue
The drain is leaking	El desagüe tiene una fuga.	Leak from drain area
Water is coming out under the sink	Sale agua debajo del fregadero.	Easy line for urgent situations

How Native Speakers Often Say It

Native speech tends to get concrete fast. People often point to the part that fails instead of naming the whole fixture. That’s why these lines sound so natural:

• El grifo pierde agua. — The faucet is leaking water.
• Sale agua por abajo. — Water is coming out from underneath.
• Hay agua debajo del lavabo. — There’s water under the sink.
• La tubería está perdiendo. — The pipe is leaking.

If you’re speaking to a landlord or hotel staff, this kind of plain wording works well. It doesn’t sound like a textbook, and it doesn’t force you to guess which noun is standard in that country.

Regional Choices That Change The Sound Of The Sentence

Spanish stretches across a lot of countries, so object names shift. The safest move is to learn one kitchen version, one bathroom version, and one emergency version.

A simple set looks like this:

• Kitchen: El fregadero tiene una fuga.
• Bathroom: El lavabo gotea.
• Urgent: Sale agua debajo del sink. If you blank on the noun, people will still get the point.

That last line isn’t polished Spanish, yet it’s useful in a pinch. Communication comes first. Then, once the stress drops, you can switch to cleaner wording.

When To Use “Gotea” And When To Use “Tiene Una Fuga”

This choice changes the picture in the listener’s head. A drip sounds minor. A leak sounds wider and messier.

Use gotea when:

• water falls in drops
• the faucet won’t fully shut
• the leak is slow and steady

Use tiene una fuga when:

• water is escaping from a pipe or seal
• you see a puddle or wet cabinet
• the leak feels more serious than a drip

You can also mix them. A person may say El grifo gotea y hay una fuga debajo del fregadero. That tells the whole story in one shot: the faucet drips, and there’s another leak below.

If You Mean	Use This Spanish	Tone
Slow drip	Gotea	Casual and precise
Leak in general	Tiene una fuga	Clear and broad
Water escaping below	Sale agua debajo de…	Fast and direct
Faucet leak	El grifo pierde agua	Very natural

Ready-To-Say Phrases For Real Situations

Here are lines you can use without changing much. They’re short, natural, and easy to pull out when you’re stressed.

In A Hotel Or Rental

• El lavabo tiene una fuga.
• Sale agua debajo del fregadero.
• ¿Pueden mandar a alguien?

With A Plumber

• El grifo gotea desde anoche.
• La tubería debajo del fregadero pierde agua.
• El desagüe también tiene una fuga.

In A Friend’s House

• Oye, el lavabo gotea.
• Hay agua en el mueble de abajo.
• Creo que hay una fuga.

These lines sound normal because they match how people talk when something in the house goes wrong. They don’t strain for perfect grammar at the cost of clarity.

One Simple Rule To Remember

If you want one rule you can carry around, use this:

Gotea for drips. Tiene una fuga for leaks. Fregadero for kitchen sink. Lavabo or lavamanos for bathroom sink.

That pattern will get you through most conversations. If the country uses a different noun, the rest of your sentence still does the heavy lifting. People will follow you, and you’ll sound far more natural than if you translate each English word one by one.

So when you need to say “The Sink Is Leaking in Spanish,” don’t hunt for one magic line. Match the room, match the leak, and say the part that matters. That’s what makes the phrase sound real.