Monday, December 9, 2013

¿Qué me ves?

Today we're going to take a look at the verb ver, to see.  It seems simple enough, but I've discovered some surprising usages.

¿Qué me ves?

This is another one of those situations where a literal translation wouldn't make any sense, "What you seeing me?".  It's best we throw that translation out and start over.  In fact, let me help you.

¿Qué me ves?
What are you looking at?



What are you looking at?  I'm pouring water on my sandal....and?


Isn't she cute?  But that look on her face tells me you'd best not upset her.

If you happen to notice someone staring at you (maybe because you're wearing some of your lunch) this is the perfect phrase.

Let's take a look at some other ways to use ver.

¿Cómo lo ves?
How do you see it?

As a literal translation this one comes close.  A better translation would be:

¿Cómo lo ves?
What do you think?

En mi opinon, la película estuvo bien, ¿Cómo lo ves?
In my opinion, the movie was good, what do you think?

And if you find yourself speaking with a Mexican you may hear this as simply:

¿Cómo ves?

Ella habla muy bien español, ¿no?  ¿Cómo ves?
She speaks really good Spanish right?  What do you think?

While the sentences above are kind of interesting, I didn't find them surprising.  This usage of ver did surprise me.

Te veo triste
You look sad

Te veo cansado
You look tired

Te veo delgado
You look thin

To talk about  how you look you use verse.

¿Cómo me veo?
How do I look?

Me veo horrible
I look horrible

How many times have you asked someone this in English:

Do I look stupid?

Now you're about to learn how to say it in Spanish.

¿Me ves cara de tonto?
Do I look stupid?

Actually, you can talk about any type of facial expression.

¿De verdad me ves con cara de aburrido?
Do I really looking boring?

Before I wrap things up, take a look at this really cute image.


I don't see anything, but it's best they take you to the doctor.

While there's nothing earth-shattering about what I wrote, you'll hear all the above at some point and now you won't be taken by surprise.  Don't hesitate to toss a few of these expressions around, your Spanish friends will definitely notice!

Well, that's it, ¡Hasta la próxima!

3 comments:

  1. There’s also “a ver” (“we'll see”, with a sense of “I wonder…”). A ver qué dicen cuando se den cuenta – I wonder what they’ll say when they realize.
    Since it sounds exactly identical to “haber”, Spanish speakers sometimes spell it that way, which confuses us Spanish learners – “Haber qué dicen cuando se den cuenta.”

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  2. Gracias por esa clarificación, Mago! He oído "A ver" así y me confundió un poquito... y lo cuidaré eso uso de "haber"!

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  3. I've never heard ¿Qué me ves? before, is that from Mexico? It sounds like a fun phrase to me.

    Just saw huarache too, so I'm guessing yes Mexico. Sandal in other countries could be chalas, sandalias and ojotas for a few examples.

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