Parecer Conjugation | How to Conjugate Parecer in Spanish

Parecer means “to seem,” “to appear,” “to look,” or “to think/opine” in indirect-object constructions. You will learn its parezco / parezca irregularity and usage-sensitive progressive and command forms.

Parecer conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Irregular. Parecer uses the irregular stem parezc- in the first-person singular present and throughout the present subjunctive: parezco and parezca, parezcamos, parezcáis.

Parecer gerund, past participle, and infinitive

The infinitive names the verb, the gerund supports progressive constructions, and the participle parecido combines with haber in compound tenses.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	parecer	to seem / appear / look
Gerund	pareciendo	seeming / appearing
Past participle	parecido	seemed / appeared

Parecer meaning and essential uses

RAE records a copular use for having a certain appearance: Parezco cansado. It also records parece que... for something appearing probable or giving an impression.

A very common opinion construction is parecerle a alguien algo: Me parece bien. / Me parece que tienes razón. Here the experiencer is expressed with an indirect-object pronoun.

Parecer irregular conjugation patterns

First-person present is parezco; the remaining present forms use parec-. Present subjunctive uses parezc- throughout: parezca, parezcamos, parezcáis.

Preterite, imperfect, future, conditional, gerund pareciendo, and participle parecido otherwise follow regular -ER morphology.

Parecer indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Parecer present tense conjugation

Present indicative (el presente de indicativo) — Use it for current situations, habits, facts, and contextually near-future reference. First-person singular is parezco; the remaining present forms use parec-.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	parezco	I seem / appear / look
Tú — you, singular informal	pareces	you seem / appear / look
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	parece	he / she seems / appears / looks; you seem / appear / look (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	parecemos	we seem / appear / look
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	parecéis	you seem / appear / look (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	parecen	they seem / appear / look; you seem / appear / look (plural)

• Parezco cansado después del viaje. — I look tired after the trip.

Parecer preterite conjugation

Preterite (el pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito indefinido) — Use it for completed or bounded past events. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	parecí	I seemed / appeared / looked
Tú — you, singular informal	pareciste	you seemed / appeared / looked
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	pareció	he / she seemed / appeared / looked; you seemed / appeared / looked (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	parecimos	we seemed / appeared / looked
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	parecisteis	you seemed / appeared / looked (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	parecieron	they seemed / appeared / looked; you seemed / appeared / looked (plural)

• Ayer parecí más tranquilo de lo que estaba. — Yesterday I seemed calmer than I was.

Parecer imperfect conjugation

Imperfect (el pretérito imperfecto) — Use it for habitual, descriptive, background, or ongoing past situations. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant parecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	parecía	I used to seem / appear / look
Tú — you, singular informal	parecías	you used to seem / appear / look
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	parecía	he / she used to seem / appear / look; you used to seem / appear / look (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	parecíamos	we used to seem / appear / look
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	parecíais	you used to seem / appear / look (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	parecían	they used to seem / appear / look; you used to seem / appear / look (plural)

• Antes parecía más fácil. — It used to seem easier.

Parecer present progressive

Present progressive — This verbal periphrasis focuses on an action or process in progress. Usage-sensitive. Estar pareciendo is grammatically possible but marked; ordinary Spanish usually prefers simple parecer unless the speaker highlights an evolving or temporary impression.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	estoy pareciendo	I am seeming / appearing
Tú — you, singular informal	estás pareciendo	you are seeming / appearing
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	está pareciendo	he / she is seeming / appearing; you are seeming / appearing (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	estamos pareciendo	we are seeming / appearing
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	estáis pareciendo	you are seeming / appearing (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	están pareciendo	they are seeming / appearing; you are seeming / appearing (plural)

• Estoy pareciendo demasiado serio en estas fotos. — I am coming across as too serious in these photos. (marked usage)

Parecer near future conjugation

Near future — This verbal periphrasis expresses an intention, plan, or expected event. Form it with present ir + a + parecer.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	voy a parecer	I am going to seem / appear / look
Tú — you, singular informal	vas a parecer	you are going to seem / appear / look
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	va a parecer	he / she is going to seem / appear / look; you are going to seem / appear / look (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	vamos a parecer	we are going to seem / appear / look
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	vais a parecer	you are going to seem / appear / look (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	van a parecer	they are going to seem / appear / look; you are going to seem / appear / look (plural)

• Va a parecer extraño al principio. — It is going to seem strange at first.

Parecer future tense conjugation

Simple future (el futuro simple) — Use it for future reference and, where useful, probability. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	pareceré	I will seem / appear / look
Tú — you, singular informal	parecerás	you will seem / appear / look
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	parecerá	he / she will seem / appear / look; you will seem / appear / look (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	pareceremos	we will seem / appear / look
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	pareceréis	you will seem / appear / look (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	parecerán	they will seem / appear / look; you will seem / appear / look (plural)

• Parecerá más sencillo después de practicar. — It will seem easier after practicing.

Parecer conditional conjugation

Conditional (el condicional simple) — Use it for hypothetical outcomes, softened statements, or related conditional meanings. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	parecería	I would seem / appear / look
Tú — you, singular informal	parecerías	you would seem / appear / look
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	parecería	he / she would seem / appear / look; you would seem / appear / look (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	pareceríamos	we would seem / appear / look
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	pareceríais	you would seem / appear / look (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	parecerían	they would seem / appear / look; you would seem / appear / look (plural)

• Parecería una buena idea en otras circunstancias. — It would seem like a good idea in other circumstances.

Parecer present perfect conjugation

Present perfect (el pretérito perfecto compuesto) — Use it for completed events connected to a present reference frame; regional distribution varies. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant parecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	he parecido	I have seemed / appeared
Tú — you, singular informal	has parecido	you have seemed / appeared
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ha parecido	he / she has seemed / appeared; you have seemed / appeared (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hemos parecido	we have seemed / appeared
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habéis parecido	you have seemed / appeared (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	han parecido	they have seemed / appeared; you have seemed / appeared (plural)

• Me ha parecido útil la explicación. — The explanation has seemed useful to me.

Parecer past perfect conjugation

Past perfect (el pretérito pluscuamperfecto) — Use it for an event completed before another past reference point. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant parecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	había parecido	I had seemed / appeared
Tú — you, singular informal	habías parecido	you had seemed / appeared
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	había parecido	he / she had seemed / appeared; you had seemed / appeared (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habíamos parecido	we had seemed / appeared
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habíais parecido	you had seemed / appeared (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habían parecido	they had seemed / appeared; you had seemed / appeared (plural)

• Ya había parecido difícil al principio. — It had already seemed difficult at first.

Parecer future perfect conjugation

Future perfect (el futuro perfecto) — Use it for an event expected to be completed before a future reference point. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant parecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	habré parecido	I will have seemed / appeared
Tú — you, singular informal	habrás parecido	you will have seemed / appeared
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	habrá parecido	he / she will have seemed / appeared; you will have seemed / appeared (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habremos parecido	we will have seemed / appeared
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habréis parecido	you will have seemed / appeared (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habrán parecido	they will have seemed / appeared; you will have seemed / appeared (plural)

• Para entonces habrá parecido una decisión razonable. — By then it will have seemed like a reasonable decision.

Parecer conditional perfect conjugation

Conditional perfect (el condicional compuesto) — Use it for a hypothetical completed outcome. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant parecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	habría parecido	I would have seemed / appeared
Tú — you, singular informal	habrías parecido	you would have seemed / appeared
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	habría parecido	he / she would have seemed / appeared; you would have seemed / appeared (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habríamos parecido	we would have seemed / appeared
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habríais parecido	you would have seemed / appeared (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habrían parecido	they would have seemed / appeared; you would have seemed / appeared (plural)

• Habría parecido extraño sin contexto. — It would have seemed strange without context.

Parecer subjunctive conjugations

Parecer present subjunctive conjugation

Present subjunctive (el presente de subjuntivo) — Use it in subordinate environments involving wishes, influence, emotion, doubt or denial, evaluation, necessity, possibility, or non-specific reference. Present subjunctive uses parezc- throughout.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	parezca	that I seem / appear / look
Tú — you, singular informal	parezcas	that you seem / appear / look
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	parezca	that he / she seem / appear / look; that you seem / appear / look (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	parezcamos	that we seem / appear / look
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	parezcáis	that you seem / appear / look (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	parezcan	that they seem / appear / look; that you seem / appear / look (plural)

• Quiero que parezcas natural. — I want you to look natural.

Parecer imperfect subjunctive conjugation

Imperfect subjunctive (el imperfecto de subjuntivo) — The main table uses the -ra series. The accepted -se series is also valid in many contexts and is demonstrated after the table. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant parecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	pareciera	that I seemed / appeared / looked
Tú — you, singular informal	parecieras	that you seemed / appeared / looked
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	pareciera	that he / she seemed / appeared / looked; that you seemed / appeared / looked (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	pareciéramos	that we seemed / appeared / looked
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	parecierais	that you seemed / appeared / looked (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	parecieran	that they seemed / appeared / looked; that you seemed / appeared / looked (plural)

• Era posible que pareciera más sencillo desde fuera. — It was possible that it seemed easier from the outside.
• No creían que pareciese tan complicado. — They did not think it seemed so complicated.

Parecer future subjunctive conjugation

Future subjunctive (el futuro de subjuntivo) — Rare in modern everyday Spanish. It survives mainly in formal, legal, proverbial, literary, or historical contexts. These rare reference forms belong mainly to formal, legal, proverbial, literary, or historical registers.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	pareciere	if / when I should seem / appear / look
Tú — you, singular informal	parecieres	if / when you should seem / appear / look
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	pareciere	if / when he / she should seem / appear / look; if / when you should seem / appear / look (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	pareciéremos	if / when we should seem / appear / look
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	pareciereis	if / when you should seem / appear / look (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	parecieren	if / when they should seem / appear / look; if / when you should seem / appear / look (plural)

• Si pareciere necesario, se repetirá la prueba. — If it should seem necessary, the test will be repeated.

Parecer present perfect subjunctive conjugation

Present perfect subjunctive (el pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo) — Use it when a completed event appears inside a present- or future-oriented subjunctive environment. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant parecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	haya parecido	that I have seemed / appeared
Tú — you, singular informal	hayas parecido	that you have seemed / appeared
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	haya parecido	that he / she has seemed / appeared; that you have seemed / appeared (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hayamos parecido	that we have seemed / appeared
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hayáis parecido	that you have seemed / appeared (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hayan parecido	that they have seemed / appeared; that you have seemed / appeared (plural)

• Me alegra que te haya parecido útil. — I am glad that it seemed useful to you.

Parecer past perfect subjunctive conjugation

Past perfect subjunctive (el pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo) — The main table uses hubiera; hubiese is an accepted auxiliary alternative in many contexts and is demonstrated after the table. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant parecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	hubiera parecido	that I had seemed / appeared
Tú — you, singular informal	hubieras parecido	that you had seemed / appeared
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	hubiera parecido	that he / she had seemed / appeared; that you had seemed / appeared (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hubiéramos parecido	that we had seemed / appeared
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hubierais parecido	that you had seemed / appeared (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hubieran parecido	that they had seemed / appeared; that you had seemed / appeared (plural)

• Si hubiera parecido peligroso, habríamos parado. — If it had seemed dangerous, we would have stopped.
• Si hubiese parecido más fácil, quizá lo habríamos intentado antes. — If it had seemed easier, perhaps we would have tried earlier.

Parecer future perfect subjunctive conjugation

Future perfect subjunctive (el futuro perfecto de subjuntivo) — Rare in modern everyday Spanish. Treat it as a formal or historical reference form, not an everyday conversational target. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant parecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	hubiere parecido	if / when I should have seemed / appeared
Tú — you, singular informal	hubieres parecido	if / when you should have seemed / appeared
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	hubiere parecido	if / when he / she should have seemed / appeared; if / when you should have seemed / appeared (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hubiéremos parecido	if / when we should have seemed / appeared
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hubiereis parecido	if / when you should have seemed / appeared (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hubieren parecido	if / when they should have seemed / appeared; if / when you should have seemed / appeared (plural)

• Si hubiere parecido insuficiente, deberá revisarse. — If it should have seemed insufficient, it must be reviewed.

Parecer imperative and commands

Commands address another person directly. The nosotros/nosotras row has exhortative “let’s…” value.

Parecer affirmative commands

Usage-sensitive. RAE records the imperative morphology parece / parecé, parezca, pareced, parezcan, but direct commands with “seem/look” are uncommon and mainly fit acting, presentation, or deliberately rhetorical contexts.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	parece	seem
Usted — you, singular formal	parezca	seem (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	parezcamos	let’s seem
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	pareced	seem (plural)
Ustedes — you, plural	parezcan	seem (plural formal)

• Parece tranquilo durante la escena. — Look calm during the scene. (marked acting instruction)

Parecer negative commands

Usage-sensitive. Negative imperative forms are morphologically valid but likewise context-sensitive; they are most natural when someone can intentionally control their appearance or presentation.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	no parezcas	do not seem
Usted — you, singular formal	no parezca	do not seem (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no parezcamos	let’s not seem
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no parezcáis	do not seem (plural)
Ustedes — you, plural	no parezcan	do not seem (plural formal)

• No parezcas nervioso delante del público. — Do not look nervous in front of the audience. (marked instruction)

Common constructions with Parecer

These patterns capture the most useful complements and lexical frames.

• parecer + adjective / noun phrase. — to seem / look a certain way.
• parecer que + clause. — it seems that something is the case.
• parecerle a alguien + adjective/noun/clause. — to seem to someone / for someone to think.
• al parecer. — apparently / seemingly.

Example sentences with Parecer

These examples reinforce common usage.

• Me parece bien. — It seems fine to me / I think that is fine.
• Parece que va a llover. — It looks like it is going to rain.
• ¿Qué te parece esta opción? — What do you think of this option?
• No creo que parezca difícil después de practicar. — I do not think it will seem difficult after practicing.
• Me ha parecido una buena explicación. — It seemed like a good explanation to me.
• Parece más tranquilo ahora. — He / she looks calmer now.

Regional and usage notes for Parecer

The core tables retain tú, usted, vosotros/vosotras, and ustedes; voseo is noted separately where relevant.

• Vos parecés cansado hoy. — You look tired today. (voseo)
• Parecé tranquilo durante la escena. — Look calm during the scene. (affirmative vos; marked acting instruction)

Parecer is morphologically irregular in parezco / parezca and pragmatically distinctive. Master the high-frequency opinion frame me parece... and treat progressive and imperative uses as context-sensitive.