ver la televisión
/beɾ la telebisjon/from spelling rules
To watch television in Spanish is to say ver la televisión.
The phrase means to watch television.
Which one should you use?
While ver la televisión is grammatically complete, ver la tele is more frequently used in casual conversation.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase uses the definite article la before televisión, which is required in Spanish unlike in English where 'television' is often used without an article.
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often use mirar la televisión instead of ver la televisión, but ver la televisión is the more natural idiomatic choice for consuming media.
Did you know?
- The verb ver shares a common ancestor with the English words 'wit' and 'wise', both stemming from the same Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'to see'.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, ver la tele can refer to the act of relaxing or doing nothing productive, regardless of whether a specific show is on.
- In some Latin American countries, people may use ver la tele to describe watching a movie or a streaming service, even if no physical television set is involved.
Examples in context
- Podéis ver la televisión.You can watch television.This example is useful for showing how to use ver la televisión with the modal verb 'podéis'.Tatoeba #10794100 by Shishir, translation #69882 by CK
- No quiero ver la televisión.I don't want to watch television.Tatoeba #4624400 by DarkHollow, translation #4620706 by CK
- No quiero ver la televisión esta noche.I don't want to watch television this evening.This example demonstrates the use of ver la televisión when specifying a time like 'esta noche'.Tatoeba #1707603 by teskmon, translation #1578573 by CM
- Me gusta ver la televisión los fines de semanaI like to watch television on weekends
- ¿Quieres mirar la tele esta noche?Do you want to watch TV tonight?
- Vamos a echarnos una películaLet's watch a movie
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
María and Daniel are talking in the living room.
- María¿Quieres ver la televisión conmigo, Daniel?Do you want to watch television with me, Daniel?
- DanielSí, María, pero solo por una hora.Yes, María, but only for one hour.
- MaríaEstá bien, busquemos algo interesante.That is fine, let's find something interesting.
- DanielVale, vamos a ver la televisión entonces.Okay, let's watch television then.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries la, televisión, ver, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
