A colorful illustration showing a young child kneeling down and actively searching for a teddy bear underneath a low bed, using a flashlight.

buscaba

boo-SKA-bah

verbA2regular ar

was looking for?Continuous past action (I/he/she/you formal),used to look for?Habitual past action (I/he/she/you formal)

Also:was searching?General search context,was trying to find?Focus on the intent

Quick Reference

infinitivebuscar

gerundbuscando

past Participlebuscado

📝 In Action

Yo buscaba mis gafas cuando sonó el teléfono.

I was looking for my glasses when the phone rang.

Ella siempre buscaba la manera de ayudar a los demás.

She always used to look for a way to help others.

¿Qué buscaba usted en ese cajón?

What were you (formal) looking for in that drawer?

Word Connections

Synonyms

encontrar (to find (opposite of looking))
rastrear (to track)

Common Collocations

buscaba trabajo – I/he/she was looking for a job
buscaba excusas – I/he/she was looking for excuses

Idioms & Expressions

buscarle tres pies al gato – To make things unnecessarily complicated or look for trouble where there is none.

💡 Grammar Points

Who Does the Action?

'Buscaba' can mean 'I was looking,' 'He was looking,' 'She was looking,' or 'You (formal) were looking.' Context or the use of 'yo' or 'él/ella/usted' is needed to know who is doing the action.

The Imperfect Tense's Job

The imperfect tense (like 'buscaba') describes actions that were happening continuously in the past ('was searching') or actions that happened repeatedly or habitually ('used to search').

❌ Common Pitfalls

Imperfect vs. Preterite

Mistake: "Using 'busqué' (I looked, one time) when you mean 'buscaba' (I was looking, ongoing)."

Correction: Use 'buscaba' when setting the scene or describing a long period of searching. Use 'busqué' only for a single, completed moment.

⭐ Usage Tips

Setting the Scene

Use 'buscaba' to describe the background action when something else interrupted it: 'Buscaba mi libro cuando de repente se fue la luz' (I was looking for my book when suddenly the light went out).

🔄 Conjugations

indicative

present

él/ella/ustedbusca

yobusco

túbuscas

ellos/ellas/ustedesbuscan

nosotrosbuscamos

vosotrosbuscáis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedbuscaba

yobuscaba

túbuscabas

ellos/ellas/ustedesbuscaban

nosotrosbuscábamos

vosotrosbuscabais

preterite

él/ella/ustedbuscó

yobusqué

túbuscaste

ellos/ellas/ustedesbuscaron

nosotrosbuscamos

vosotrosbuscasteis

subjunctive

present

él/ella/ustedbusque

yobusque

túbusques

ellos/ellas/ustedesbusquen

nosotrosbusquemos

vosotrosbusquéis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedbuscara

yobuscara

túbuscaras

ellos/ellas/ustedesbuscaran

nosotrosbuscáramos

vosotrosbuscarais

View All Tenses & Moods →

✏️ Quick Practice

💡 Quick Quiz: buscaba

Question 1 of 1

Which of these sentences correctly uses 'buscaba' to describe a repeated past action?

📚 More Resources

Word Family

buscar(to look for) - verb

búsqueda(search (noun)) - noun

buscador(search engine, finder) - noun

Frequently Asked Questions

If 'buscaba' means 'I was looking,' how do I say 'He was looking'?

It's the same! 'Buscaba' is used for 'yo' (I), 'él' (he), 'ella' (she), and 'usted' (you formal). You need context or the subject pronoun (like 'Él buscaba...') to know who did the action.

What is the difference between 'buscaba' and 'busqué'?

'Buscaba' (Imperfect) describes an action that was ongoing or repeated in the past ('was looking'). 'Busqué' (Preterite) describes a single, completed action in the past ('I looked, and then I stopped').