Spanish Verbs: Stop Confusing Ver vs Mirar

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In Spanish, there are a couple of verbs that always seem to catch beginners students out, especially when translating directly from English. The most common example of this is Ser vs Estar, which both mean “to be” (read a full post on that here). A less common, but still somewhat confusing pair is Ver vs Mirar and in this post, we will explain exactly how to avoid confusing them again.

Let’s quickly review what both verbs mean in English:

Ver = to see
Mirar = to look or watch

As you can tell, both verbs quite different, although, in English, we tend to use them interchangeably.

Spanish Grammar: Mastering The Verb Ver

Ver is an irregular verb, and is the equivalent of “to see” in English.

It is used in pretty much the exact same way, with the addition of a few extra scenarios.

Below is are the most common conjugations of ver.

Personal Pronoun	Simple Present (See / Sees)	Simple past (Saw)	Future (I will see)	Imperfect past (Used to see)
Yo	Veo	Ví	Veré	Veía
Tú	Ves	Viste	Verás	Veías
Usted	Ve	Vió	Verá	Veía
Él / Ella	Ve	Vió	Verá	Veía
Nosotros / Nosotras	Vemos	Vimos	Veremos	Veíamos
Ustedes	Ven	Vieron	Verán	Veían
Ellos / Ellas	Ven	Vieron	Verán	Veían

Now it’s time to cover the most common scenarios in which ver can be used.

1) To see people or animals

I saw your mother yesterday at the market – Vi a tu madre ayer en el mercado

Every day I see my neighbor walking with his dog – Todos los días veo a mi vecino caminar con su perro

Yesterday I saw your cat on my roof – Ayer vi a tu gato en mi techo

2) To watch or see – TV, movies, plays, and sports

This is one scenario which tends to catch most beginners out. If you are thinking in English, then it makes sense to use mirar in this scenario.

However, when talking about watching something (be it on TV, in a theater or a sports event), we need to use to verb ver.

Tomorrow I will see the movie that you recommended to me – Mañana veré la película que me recomendaste

We are watching the baseball game – Estamos viendo el juego de baseball

The children are watching TV now – Los niños están viendo TV ahora

Last night we saw that play – Anoche vimos esa obra de teatro

3) To talk about visiting someone or a place

I’m going to see my mother this afternoon at her house – Voy a ver a mi madre esta tarde en su casa

Let’s see the new store – Vamos a ver la nueva tienda

My friends came to see me – Mis amigos vinieron a verme

See you later – Nos vemos mas tarde

4) To talk about a possible result

I’ll see what happens – Ya veré que pasa

I gave him the report to see what he thinks – Le di el informe a ver que piensa

You will see what decision you need to take – Tú verás qué decisión necesitas tomar

5) Use Ver to indicate an understanding

I don’t see the difference – No veo la diferencia

We didn’t see the mistake – Nosotros no vimos el error

Now I see what you are trying to explain – Ahora veo lo que intentas explicar

6) How does it look?

Do you like how this dress looks on me? – ¿Te gusta como se me ve este vestido?

How does the wound look? – ¿Cómo se ve la herida?

I got a new haircut, how does it looks? – Tengo un nuevo corte de cabello, ¿cómo se ve?

Spanish Grammar: How And When To Use Mirar

Mirar is a regular verb, and is the equivalent of “to look” or “to watch” in English.

The main difference between Spanish and English is that mirar is used when you consciously fix your eyes and attention on one thing at a time.

Mirar is also used as a way to ask someone to “check out” what is going on.

Before we cover specific scenarios, let’s review the most common conjugations of this verb.

Personal Pronoun	Simple Present (Look / Looks)	Simple past (Looked)	Future (I will look)	Imperfect past (Used to look)
Yo	Miro	Miré	Miraré	Miraba
Tú	Miras	Miraste	Mirarás	Mirabas
Usted	Mira	Miró	Mirará	Miraba
Él / Ella	Mira	Miró	Mirará	Miraba
Nosotros / Nosotras	Miramos	Miramos	Miraremos	Mirábamos
Ustedes	Miran	Miraron	Mirarán	Miraban
Ellos / Ellas	Miran	Miraron	Mirarán	Miraban

There are two specific scenarios where mirar is always used.

1) To pay attention to something or someone

My sister likes to watch the birds in the trees – A mi hermana le gusta mirar los pájaros en el árbol

Look at that car! – ¡Mira ese auto!

Look how I do it, and then try to do the same – Mira como lo hago yo, y luego intenta hacer lo mismo

2) To ask for attention at a situation

Look what is happening – Mira lo que está sucediendo

Look at this, what do you think? – Mira esto, ¿Qué piensas?

In the meeting we are going to look at sales this month – En la reunión vamos a mirar las ventas de este mes

Bonus Verbs: Parecer and Buscar

As we already mentioned, mirar is used as “to look” or “to watch”

However, this should not be confused with expressing “to look like” or “to look for”, which requires two different verbs.

The verb parecer is used when we want to express “look like” with regards to appearances, physical aspects or ideas that you have about something or someone.

On the other hand, we use the verb buscar in order to express “look for” with regards to searching or finding something or someone.

Below Spanish verbs parecer and buscar verbs conjugated in the simple present tense.

Personal Pronoun	Look Like (Simple Present)	English equivalent	Look for (Simple Present)	English equivalent
Yo	Parezco	I look like	Busco	I look for
Tú	Pareces	You look like	Buscas	You look for
Usted	Parece	You look like	Busca	You look for
Él / Ella	Parece	He / She looks like	Busca	He / She looks for
Nosotros / Nosotras	Parecemos	We look like	Buscamos	We look for
Ustedes	Parecen	You look like	Buscan	You look for
Ellos / Ellas	Parecen	They look like	Buscan	They look for

Examples:

It looks like he is not coming – Parece que el no viene

We are looking for a restaurant to eat – Estamos buscando un restaurante para comer

He looks like his father – Se parece a su padre

They are looking for you – Ellos te están buscando

What are you looking for? – ¿Qué estás buscando?

Ver v Mirar: Exercises

Now it’s time to test your knowledge of Ver vs Mirar.

(scroll below for answers)

A) Select the right personal pronoun for every sentence

Ví a tu novio ayer en el cine ( Yo – Ella – Nosotros)
Miramos las estrellas toda la noche ( Ustedes – Ellos – Nosotros)
Fueron a ver la nueva película (Nosotras – Ellas – Tú)

B) Fill the blank space with the right conjugation of VER

Ellos ____ televisión toda la noche
Nosotros ya ____ el nuevo horario de clases
¿____ el vestido que está usando Ana?

C) Fill the blank space with the right conjugation of MIRAR

No puedes _____ hasta que yo lo diga
Ellos se _____ a los ojos con amor
Nosotros ______ el anochecer en la montaña

D) Fill the blank space with the right conjugation of VER or MIRAR

Yo ____ cuando tu me _____ en clases
Anoche nosotros _____ la última temporada de Game of Thrones
_____ el desastre que hiciste

E) Tell what sentences are correct or incorrect, correct if it’s needed

Ella no pudo miró los errores
¿No ves que ellos te están engañando?
Tu verá lo que está sucediendo ahora
Vamos a ver los regalos

Answers