Darren Holloway

Since I spent an hour figuring out the difference between mieru and mirareru today…

• 見る: (miru) To see
• 見られる: (mirareru; potential form) To be able to see
• 見える: (mieru: ??? form) Has the state in which the potential to be seen exists.

Examples:

• 海を見ます:
  • I see the ocean.
• あの山の上に海が見える:
  • From the top of that mountain, the ocean can be seen.
• あの山は上りましたので、海が見られました:
  • Because I climbed that mountain, I was able to see the ocean.

Or, more succinctly, a human does mirareru; an object does mieru ;)