mirar Imperfect Conjugation
mirar — to look at
The imperfect of mirar uses the regular -aba endings: miraba, mirabas, miraba, mirábamos, mirabais, miraban.
mirar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe what you used to watch habitually or what you were looking at when something else happened. It sets the scene in the past.
Notes on mirar in the Imperfect
Mirar is regular in the imperfect. Note that only the 'nosotros' form carries a written accent on the first 'a'.
Example Sentences
De niño, miraba los dibujos animados cada mañana.
As a child, I used to watch cartoons every morning.
yo
Mientras nosotros mirábamos el paisaje, empezó a llover.
While we were looking at the landscape, it started to rain.
nosotros
Ellas miraban por la ventana con curiosidad.
They were looking out the window with curiosity.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Adding an accent to all forms (mirába).
Correct: Only mirábamos has an accent.
Why: Learners often over-apply the accent rule from the nosotros form to other persons in the imperfect.
Master Spanish verbs in context
Memorizing tables only gets you so far. Read 200+ illustrated and narrated Spanish stories to see verbs like 'mirar' used naturally — in the tenses you're learning.
Related Tenses
Present
yo: miro
The present tense of mirar is regular: miro, miras, mira, miramos, miráis, miran.
Preterite
yo: miré
The preterite of mirar is regular: miré, miraste, miró, miramos, mirasteis, miraron.
Future
yo: miraré
The future tense of mirar adds endings to the infinitive: miraré, mirarás, mirará, miraremos, miraréis, mirarán.
Conditional
yo: miraría
The conditional of mirar is regular: miraría, mirarías, miraría, miraríamos, miraríais, mirarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: mire
The present subjunctive of mirar uses -e endings: mire, mires, mire, miremos, miréis, miren.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: mirara
The imperfect subjunctive of mirar is formed from the preterite stem: mirara, miraras, mirara, miráramos, mirarais, miraran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: mira
The imperative of mirar provides commands: mira, mire, miremos, mirad, miren.
Negative Imperative
yo: no mires
The negative imperative of mirar uses subjunctive forms: no mires, no mire, no miremos, no miréis, no miren.