No "for" needed
English says "look for", Spanish just says buscar: busco trabajo (I'm looking for a job). With people, add the personal a: busco a mi hermano. And ir a buscar = to go and get / pick up: voy a buscarte al aeropuerto.
Indicative tenses of buscar
Facts and things that happen: the tenses you'll use most.
Present indicative
| yo | buscoI look for |
|---|---|
| tú | buscasyou look for |
| él/ella/usted | buscahe/she looks for |
| nosotros/as | buscamoswe look for |
| vosotros/as | buscáisyou all look for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | buscanthey look for |
Preterite indicative
| yo | busquéI looked for |
|---|---|
| tú | buscasteyou looked for |
| él/ella/usted | buscóhe/she looked for |
| nosotros/as | buscamoswe looked for |
| vosotros/as | buscasteisyou all looked for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | buscaronthey looked for |
Spelling change only in the yo form: c → qu before e (busqué), to keep the hard "k" sound.
Imperfect indicative
| yo | buscabaI used to look for |
|---|---|
| tú | buscabasyou used to look for |
| él/ella/usted | buscabahe/she used to look for |
| nosotros/as | buscábamoswe used to look for |
| vosotros/as | buscabaisyou all used to look for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | buscabanthey used to look for |
Present continuous indicative
| yo | estoy buscandoI am looking for |
|---|---|
| tú | estás buscandoyou are looking for |
| él/ella/usted | está buscandohe/she is looking for |
| nosotros/as | estamos buscandowe are looking for |
| vosotros/as | estáis buscandoyou all are looking for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | están buscandothey are looking for |
estar + gerund
Informal future indicative
| yo | voy a buscarI am going to look for |
|---|---|
| tú | vas a buscaryou are going to look for |
| él/ella/usted | va a buscarhe/she is going to look for |
| nosotros/as | vamos a buscarwe are going to look for |
| vosotros/as | vais a buscaryou all are going to look for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | van a buscarthey are going to look for |
ir a + infinitive
Future indicative
| yo | buscaréI will look for |
|---|---|
| tú | buscarásyou will look for |
| él/ella/usted | buscaráhe/she will look for |
| nosotros/as | buscaremoswe will look for |
| vosotros/as | buscaréisyou all will look for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | buscaránthey will look for |
Conditional indicative
| yo | buscaríaI would look for |
|---|---|
| tú | buscaríasyou would look for |
| él/ella/usted | buscaríahe/she would look for |
| nosotros/as | buscaríamoswe would look for |
| vosotros/as | buscaríaisyou all would look for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | buscaríanthey would look for |
Present perfect indicative
| yo | he buscadoI have looked for |
|---|---|
| tú | has buscadoyou have looked for |
| él/ella/usted | ha buscadohe/she has looked for |
| nosotros/as | hemos buscadowe have looked for |
| vosotros/as | habéis buscadoyou all have looked for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | han buscadothey have looked for |
haber (present) + past participle
Past perfect indicative
| yo | había buscadoI had looked for |
|---|---|
| tú | habías buscadoyou had looked for |
| él/ella/usted | había buscadohe/she had looked for |
| nosotros/as | habíamos buscadowe had looked for |
| vosotros/as | habíais buscadoyou all had looked for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habían buscadothey had looked for |
haber (imperfect) + past participle
Future perfect indicative
| yo | habré buscadoI will have looked for |
|---|---|
| tú | habrás buscadoyou will have looked for |
| él/ella/usted | habrá buscadohe/she will have looked for |
| nosotros/as | habremos buscadowe will have looked for |
| vosotros/as | habréis buscadoyou all will have looked for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrán buscadothey will have looked for |
haber (future) + past participle
Conditional perfect indicative
| yo | habría buscadoI would have looked for |
|---|---|
| tú | habrías buscadoyou would have looked for |
| él/ella/usted | habría buscadohe/she would have looked for |
| nosotros/as | habríamos buscadowe would have looked for |
| vosotros/as | habríais buscadoyou all would have looked for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrían buscadothey would have looked for |
haber (conditional) + past participle
Subjunctive tenses of buscar
Wishes, doubts, emotions and "if" sentences.
Present subjunctive
| yo | busque(that) I look for |
|---|---|
| tú | busques(that) you look for |
| él/ella/usted | busque(that) he/she looks for |
| nosotros/as | busquemos(that) we look for |
| vosotros/as | busquéis(that) you all look for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | busquen(that) they look for |
Same spelling change in the whole subjunctive: busque.
Imperfect subjunctive
| yo | buscara(if) I looked for |
|---|---|
| tú | buscaras(if) you looked for |
| él/ella/usted | buscara(if) he/she looked for |
| nosotros/as | buscáramos(if) we looked for |
| vosotros/as | buscarais(if) you all looked for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | buscaran(if) they looked for |
Future subjunctive
| yo | buscare(if) I look for |
|---|---|
| tú | buscares(if) you look for |
| él/ella/usted | buscare(if) he/she looks for |
| nosotros/as | buscáremos(if) we look for |
| vosotros/as | buscareis(if) you all look for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | buscaren(if) they look for |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Present perfect subjunctive
| yo | haya buscado(that) I have looked for |
|---|---|
| tú | hayas buscado(that) you have looked for |
| él/ella/usted | haya buscado(that) he/she has looked for |
| nosotros/as | hayamos buscado(that) we have looked for |
| vosotros/as | hayáis buscado(that) you all have looked for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hayan buscado(that) they have looked for |
haber (present subj.) + past participle
Past perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiera buscado(if) I had looked for |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieras buscado(if) you had looked for |
| él/ella/usted | hubiera buscado(if) he/she had looked for |
| nosotros/as | hubiéramos buscado(if) we had looked for |
| vosotros/as | hubierais buscado(if) you all had looked for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieran buscado(if) they had looked for |
haber (imperfect subj.) + past participle
Future perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiere buscado(if) I will have looked for |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieres buscado(if) you will have looked for |
| él/ella/usted | hubiere buscado(if) he/she will have looked for |
| nosotros/as | hubiéremos buscado(if) we will have looked for |
| vosotros/as | hubiereis buscado(if) you all will have looked for |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieren buscado(if) they will have looked for |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Imperative tenses of buscar
Commands and instructions.
Affirmative imperative
| tú | buscalook for! |
|---|---|
| usted | busquelook for! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | busquemoslet's look for! |
| vosotros/as | buscadlook for! (you all) |
| ustedes | busquenlook for! (you all, formal) |
Negative imperative
| tú | no busquesdon't look for! |
|---|---|
| usted | no busquedon't look for! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | no busquemoslet's not look for! |
| vosotros/as | no busquéisdon't look for! (you all) |
| ustedes | no busquendon't look for! (you all, formal) |
Practice buscar
Two quick exercises. No sign-up, no app: just you and buscar.
How to use buscar
Busco mis gafas.
I'm looking for my glasses.
Lo busqué en Google.
I googled it.
Estoy buscando piso.
I'm looking for a flat.
Te voy a buscar a la estación.
I'll pick you up at the station.
Búscalo en el diccionario.
Look it up in the dictionary.
Example sentences with buscar
- ¿Qué buscas?What are you looking for?
- Busqué por todas partes.I looked everywhere.
- Te estábamos buscando.We were looking for you.
- Buscaba un regalo para mi madre.I was looking for a present for my mom.
- Buscaremos otra solución.We'll look for another solution.
- ¿Me buscarías un taxi?Would you find me a taxi?
- No busques excusas.Don't look for excuses.
- ¿Has buscado en la cocina?Have you looked in the kitchen?
Verbs like buscar
All verbs ending in -car get the same qu spelling change: saqué, toqué, expliqué. -gar and -zar verbs have similar changes.
Frequently asked questions about buscar
Is buscar regular or irregular?
Buscar is a regular -ar verb. The only change is in the spelling: c → qu before e (busqué, busque), so it keeps the "k" sound.
How do you conjugate buscar in the present tense?
busco, buscas, busca, buscamos, buscáis, buscan.
How do you conjugate buscar in the preterite?
busqué, buscaste, buscó, buscamos, buscasteis, buscaron.
Buscar or encontrar?
Buscar = to look for. Encontrar = to find. Busqué mis llaves y por fin las encontré.
Do you say "buscar por"?
No, just buscar: busco un hotel. With people, use a: busco a Pedro.
What is the past participle of buscar?
The past participle is buscado and the gerund is buscando.
Free cheat sheet
All 18 tenses of buscar, on one page.
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