Mirar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of mirar — to look — is the form you need for habits, facts and what is happening now. Mirar means to look and to watch: mirar la televisión, mirar por la ventana. It is regular. It differs from ver (to see) in intention: mirar is to direct your eyes on purpose, ver is to perceive. Mirar a is to look at someone; mirar + adjective is to look a certain way. This page gives you the complete present tense table for mirar, how it is formed, when to use it, the mistakes learners make with it, and a quiz to check yourself. The first example shows it in action: “Yo miro la televisión por la noche.” — “I watch television at night”.

Present tense conjugation of mirar

Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for mirar. Mirar is a regular -ar verb, so you can build the present tense from the regular endings once you know the stem.

Present tense indicative — mirar

Person Form
yo miro
tú miras
él/ella/Ud. mira
nosotros/as miramos
vosotros/as miráis
ellos/ellas/Uds. miran

The gerund of mirar is mirando and the past participle is mirado. You need the participle for the perfect tenses and the gerund for the progressive with estar.

How the present tense of mirar is formed

For a regular -ar verb, the present tense is built on the stem mir- (the infinitive mirar without its -ar ending) plus the present tense endings: yo → miro, tú → miras, él/ella/Ud. → mira, nosotros/as → miramos, vosotros/as → miráis, ellos/ellas/Uds. → miran. So mirar gives miro, miras, mira, miramos, miráis and miran. There is nothing irregular to memorise for this verb in this tense — the endings do all the work, and the stress falls where the endings put it.

A note on spelling: the written accents in this tense are part of the form, not decoration. In the present tense, miráis carries an accent, and leaving it out changes the pronunciation and, in writing, marks the form as wrong. Copy the forms from the table above exactly, accents included.

When to use the present tense of mirar

1. Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly. For example, with mirar: “Yo miro la televisión por la noche.” — “I watch television at night”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

2. General truths and facts

Use the present for things that are always true. For example, with mirar: “Ella mira por la ventana cada mañana.” — “She looks out of the window every morning”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

3. What is happening right now

Use the present for actions in progress at this moment. For example, with mirar: “Nosotros miramos las fotos del viaje.” — “We look at the photos from the trip”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

4. Scheduled plans and the near future

Use the present for fixed plans, especially with a time expression. For example, with mirar: “Ellos miran el partido con atención.” — “They watch the match attentively”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

Present vs future: mirar now, mirar later

The present and the future both talk about things that have not happened yet in one sense, but they are not interchangeable. The present is for what is true now or already fixed; the future is for what will happen and is not yet certain. Compare the pairs below — the present form comes from this page, the future form from the full conjugation table.

  • Present tense tense: “Yo miro la televisión todos los días.” — “I look television every day.”

  • Future: “Yo miraré la televisión mañana.” — “Tomorrow I will look television.”

  • Present tense tense: “Ella mira la televisión ahora.” — “She looks television now.”

  • Future: “Ella mirará la televisión la semana que viene.” — “Next week she will look television.”

  • Present tense tense: “Nosotros miramos la televisión en clase.” — “We look television in class.”

  • Future: “Nosotros miraremos la televisión el lunes.” — “On Monday we will look television.”

Example sentences: mirar in the present tense

Six sentences using only the present tense of mirar, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.

  • “Yo miro la televisión por la noche.” — “I watch television at night.”
  • “Ella mira por la ventana cada mañana.” — “She looks out of the window every morning.”
  • “Nosotros miramos las fotos del viaje.” — “We look at the photos from the trip.”
  • “Ellos miran el partido con atención.” — “They watch the match attentively.”
  • “¿Tú miras hacia aquí, por favor?” — “Could you look this way, please?”
  • “Vosotros miráis demasiado el móvil.” — “You look at your phone too much.”

Common mistakes with mirar in the present tense

Mistake 1

Wrong: Mirar la televisión — learners use ver for watching.

Right: Yo miro la televisión.

Watching TV is mirar la televisión; ver la televisión is also used, but mirar stresses the act of watching.

Mistake 2

Wrong: Yo miro a la televisión — wrong personal a.

Right: Yo miro la televisión.

The personal a is for people: miro a María, but miro la televisión.

Quiz: mirar in the present tense

Eight questions on the present tense of mirar. Answers with explanations follow each question.

1. What is the yo form of mirar in the present tense?

  • A) miro
  • B) miras
  • C) mira
  • D) miramos

Answer: A — The yo form in the present tense is miro.

2. What is the tú form of mirar in the present tense?

  • A) miro
  • B) mira
  • C) miramos
  • D) miras

Answer: D — The tú form in the present tense is miras.

3. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of mirar in the present tense?

  • A) miras
  • B) miramos
  • C) mira
  • D) miro

Answer: C — The él/ella/Ud. form in the present tense is mira.

4. What is the nosotros/as form of mirar in the present tense?

  • A) mira
  • B) miramos
  • C) miro
  • D) miras

Answer: B — The nosotros/as form in the present tense is miramos.

5. Fill in the blank: “Yo ___ la televisión por la noche.” (I watch television at night.)

  • A) miro
  • B) miras
  • C) mira
  • D) miramos

Answer: A — The sentence needs miro.

6. Fill in the blank: “Ella ___ por la ventana cada mañana.” (She looks out of the window every morning.)

  • A) miro
  • B) miras
  • C) miramos
  • D) mira

Answer: D — The sentence needs mira.

7. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Mirar la televisión — learners use ver for watching.
  • B) Yo miro la televisión.

Answer: B — Watching TV is mirar la televisión; ver la televisión is also used, but mirar stresses the act of watching.

8. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Yo miro la televisión.
  • B) Yo miro a la televisión — wrong personal a.

Answer: A — The personal a is for people: miro a María, but miro la televisión.

Frequently asked questions

Is mirar regular in the present tense?

Yes. mirar is a regular -ar verb and its present tense follows the standard endings, so once you know the stem mir- you can build all six forms. The only thing to watch is the spelling of the endings themselves, including the accents.

What is the yo form of mirar in the present tense?

It is miro. The yo form is the one learners use most and the one that most often breaks the pattern — for mirar it is the form to learn first, before the rest of the table.

When do I use the present tense of mirar instead of the preterite?

Use the present when the action is a habit, a fact, or happening now, and the preterite when it is a finished action in the past. If you can add “yesterday” to the sentence and it still makes sense, you almost certainly need the preterite, not the present.

How can I remember the present tense forms of mirar?

Say the six forms aloud in order — miro, miras, mira, miramos, miráis, miran — three times a day for a week, always in a sentence, never as a bare list. Then use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test yourself, and the full conjugation page for mirar to see the verb in every tense.

Say it yourself

Reading is not enough — say the verb aloud before you move on. Use the forms from the tables on this page and answer these three prompts as full sentences. First, say a sentence about yourself in the present tense: “Yo miro…”. Second, say a sentence about yesterday in the preterite: “Ayer yo miré…”. Third, say a sentence about tomorrow in the future: “Mañana yo miraré…”. If you can answer all three without looking at the tables, the forms are starting to stick. If you hesitate, go back to the examples above, read them aloud twice, and try again. Speaking the forms is what turns a table you have seen into a verb you can use.

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