out of action

O

out of action

Meaning

• something is not working or cannot be used
• unable to work or function temporarily
• not operating normally
• a person who is injured or ill and cannot perform activities they usually do

Example Sentences

1. I’m afraid I cannot tell you the account balance as the system is out of action.
2. After suffering an injury in his last match, the player was out of action for several months.
3. They had to climb the stairs to the sixteenth floor of their apartment building since the lift was out of action.
4. My boss suffered a freak accident and was out of action for a few months.
5. He has been out of action for sometime now, do you think he would be able to come back and perform well now?
6. The illness he suffered from last year has kept him out of action for all this time.
7. Let’s not take that car for our road trip. It has been out of action for almost half the year and we don’t know whether it would function reliably now.
8. The footballer slipped and tore his ligament and was told that he would have to be out of action for the rest of the season.
9. He had suffered from a heart attack a few months back and it has kept him out of action all the while.

Origin
The origin of this phrase could not be traced.

About the Author

Elena Jones holds a PhD in Education from Harvard University. She has extensive experience teaching at both the K–12 and university levels, with a particular focus on English as a Second Language. Elena has dedicated her career to advancing educational practices, and she has contributed to numerous educational journals.