Inklingo

buscarla

boos-KAR-lahbusˈkaɾla

buscarla means to look for her in Spanish (referring to a person).

to look for her, to search for it

Also: to seek her/it
A2regular (stem-changing in 'yo' preterite for sound) ar
A woman stands in a brightly lit, empty hallway, cupping her hands around her mouth and calling out while looking intently down the hall, searching for another person.
infinitivebuscar
gerundbuscándola
past Participlebuscada

📝 In Action

Tienes que buscarla en la biblioteca.

A2

You have to look for her (or it, like 'the book') in the library.

Voy a salir para buscarla antes de que cierre la tienda.

B1

I'm going to leave to look for it (the item) before the store closes.

No puedo encontrar mi mochila; necesito buscarla ahora mismo.

A2

I can't find my backpack; I need to look for it right now.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • encontrarla (to find her/it)
  • localizarla (to locate her/it)

Antonyms

  • perderla (to lose her/it)

Common Collocations

  • tener que buscarlato have to look for her/it
  • poder buscarlato be able to look for her/it

🔄 Conjugations

indicative

present

él/ella/ustedbusca
yobusco
buscas
ellos/ellas/ustedesbuscan
nosotrosbuscamos
vosotrosbuscáis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedbuscaba
yobuscaba
buscabas
ellos/ellas/ustedesbuscaban
nosotrosbuscábamos
vosotrosbuscabais

preterite

él/ella/ustedbuscó
yobusqué
buscaste
ellos/ellas/ustedesbuscaron
nosotrosbuscamos
vosotrosbuscasteis

subjunctive

present

él/ella/ustedbusque
yobusque
busques
ellos/ellas/ustedesbusquen
nosotrosbusquemos
vosotrosbusquéis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedbuscara/buscase
yobuscara/buscase
buscaras/buscases
ellos/ellas/ustedesbuscaran/buscasen
nosotrosbuscáramos/buscásemos
vosotrosbuscarais/buscaseis

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: buscarla

Question 1 of 2

Which sentence correctly uses 'buscarla' to refer to 'la llave' (the key)?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family
buscar(to look for (infinitive))Verb
búsqueda(search/quest)Noun
buscándola(looking for her/it (gerund form))Verb (Gerund)
🎵 Rhymes
dejarlatomarla
📚 Etymology

The root verb 'buscar' comes from the Old French word 'busquier' and perhaps ultimately from Germanic roots. It has meant 'to seek' or 'to look for' since medieval times.

First recorded: 13th century (for the root verb 'buscar')

Cognates (Related words)

Portuguese: buscarCatalan: buscar

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why is the pronoun 'la' attached to the end of 'buscar'?

Spanish grammar requires that direct object pronouns ('la', 'lo', 'me', 'te') be attached to the end of infinitives (like 'buscar'), gerunds (like 'buscando'), and affirmative commands (like 'búsquela').

Can I separate 'la' from 'buscarla'?

Yes, but only if you move the pronoun before the main conjugated verb. For example, instead of 'Quiero buscarla,' you can say 'La quiero buscar.' You cannot put it between the two parts of the infinitive.