Breakdown of Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez.
Questions & Answers about Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez.
In Spanish, the subject pronoun is often omitted because the verb ending already shows who is doing the action.
- Quiero is the yo (I) form of querer in the present tense.
- So Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez literally means (Yo) quiero ver el vídeo otra vez, but yo is usually dropped unless you want to emphasize I.
You only need yo for emphasis or contrast, for example:
- Yo quiero ver el vídeo, pero ella no quiere.
I want to watch the video, but she doesn’t.
When one verb expresses a desire, plan, or ability and is followed by another verb, the second verb stays in the infinitive form in Spanish.
- Quiero ver = I want to watch
- quiero = I want
- ver = to see / to watch (infinitive)
Saying quiero veo would be like saying I want I watch in English, which is ungrammatical.
Other examples:
- Quiero comer. – I want to eat.
- Puedo ver el vídeo. – I can watch the video.
- Voy a ver el vídeo. – I’m going to watch the video.
Both ver and mirar deal with sight, but they’re used a bit differently:
- ver = to see, to watch (more general, more passive)
- mirar = to look (at), to look carefully, to watch (more active)
For things like films, TV, videos, etc., ver is the default and sounds more natural in Spain:
- ver una película – to watch a film
- ver la tele – to watch TV
- ver un vídeo – to watch a video
You can hear mirar un vídeo, but ver un vídeo is more common and idiomatic in Spain in this context.
Spanish uses definite articles (el, la, los, las) more often than English.
- el vídeo = the video
Here, you’re talking about a specific video that both speakers know about, so Spanish naturally uses the article.
If you wanted to talk about videos in general, you might say:
- Me gusta ver vídeos. – I like watching videos. (no article; plural/generic)
But with one particular video you mean the video, so el vídeo is normal and required.
In Spanish, every noun has a grammatical gender, masculine or feminine, and it doesn’t always follow a logical pattern.
- vídeo is a masculine noun, so it takes:
- el vídeo (singular)
- los vídeos (plural)
You simply have to memorize the gender with each noun. Some patterns help (many -o nouns are masculine), but there are exceptions.
The accent mark (vídeo) shows where the stress falls.
- vídeo (with an accent) is stressed on the first syllable: VÍ-de-o.
- video (without an accent) would normally be stressed vi-DE-o in standard Spanish spelling rules.
The Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) accepts vídeo and video, but:
- In Spain, vídeo (accented) is more common.
- In Latin America, video (no accent) is more common.
In pronunciation, Spanish v sounds like b, so it’s pronounced like bideo / bídoe-o depending on the accent pattern, not like the English v.
Both are correct but have different levels of directness/politeness:
Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez.
- Literally: I want to watch the video again.
- Direct, neutral, very common in speech.
- Can sound a bit strong if you’re asking someone for permission or a favor.
Me gustaría ver el vídeo otra vez.
- Literally: I would like to watch the video again.
- More polite and softer, good for requests:
- to a teacher
- in more formal situations
In many contexts, Me gustaría… is closer to English I’d like…, whereas Quiero… is closer to I want….
You can drop the article in some contexts, but it changes the meaning:
Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez.
- Refers to a specific video that you and the listener know about.
Quiero ver vídeo otra vez.
- Sounds incomplete or unnatural in most contexts, like saying I want to watch video again (uncountable), which Spanish doesn’t usually do with vídeo.
If you wanted it to be more general, you’d usually use the plural:
- Quiero ver vídeos. – I want to watch videos. (in general)
For the meaning “I want to watch the video again”, you need el.
Can I change the position of otra vez? Are these all correct?
- Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez.
- Quiero ver otra vez el vídeo.
- Otra vez quiero ver el vídeo.
All three sentences can be grammatically correct, but they differ in naturalness and emphasis:
Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez.
- Most natural and common order.
- Neutral emphasis: “I want to watch the video again.”
Quiero ver otra vez el vídeo.
- Also possible, but slightly less common.
- Still means “I want to watch the video again”; a bit more focus on otra vez.
Otra vez quiero ver el vídeo.
- Grammatically correct, but the emphasis shifts:
- More like Once again, I want to watch the video / Again, I (find myself) wanting to watch the video.
- Sounds more stylistic or expressive; not the standard neutral way.
For everyday speech, Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez is the go‑to version.
Literally, otra vez means another time:
- otra = other / another
- vez = time (as in occurrence, instance, not clock time)
Common alternatives for again:
- otra vez – again (very common, very neutral)
- de nuevo – again, anew (slightly more formal / written, but still everyday)
- una vez más – one more time
Examples:
- Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez.
- Quiero ver el vídeo de nuevo.
- Quiero ver el vídeo una vez más.
All three are correct and mean basically the same thing in this sentence.
Quiero is the yo (I) form of querer in the present tense.
Querer is irregular; here’s the present tense:
- yo quiero – I want
- tú quieres – you want (informal singular)
- él / ella quiere – he/she wants
- usted quiere – you want (formal singular)
- nosotros / nosotras queremos – we want
- vosotros / vosotras queréis – you all want (informal plural, mainly Spain)
- ellos / ellas quieren – they want
- ustedes quieren – you all want (formal in Spain; general plural in Latin America)
So in Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez, quiero = I want.
Yes, you can, and it’s a bit more polite:
Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez.
- Direct statement of desire: I want to watch the video again.
- Neutral in many contexts, but can sound quite direct.
Quisiera ver el vídeo otra vez.
- Uses the imperfect subjunctive form quisiera, often used as a polite conditional in practice.
- Feels like I would like to watch the video again / I’d like to watch the video again, especially when asking for something.
In a classroom in Spain, to ask the teacher, Quisiera ver el vídeo otra vez or Me gustaría ver el vídeo otra vez would sound especially polite.
The personal a is used before direct objects that are:
- people
- personified animals or things (treated like people)
- sometimes specific, known pets
Example:
- Quiero ver a María. – I want to see María.
Vídeo is an inanimate object, not a person, so no personal a is used:
- Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez. ✅
- Quiero ver al vídeo otra vez. ❌ (incorrect; sounds wrong in standard Spanish)
It’s informal or neutral, depending on tone and context.
- With friends/family: completely normal and natural.
- With a teacher or someone you don’t know well: still understandable and OK, but can sound quite direct as a request.
For a more polite tone (especially when asking someone to do something), people often choose:
- Me gustaría ver el vídeo otra vez.
- ¿Podemos ver el vídeo otra vez? – Can we watch the video again?
- ¿Podría ver el vídeo otra vez? – Could I watch the video again? (more formal)
In this sentence, querer clearly means to want, because it’s followed by an infinitive (ver).
- Quiero ver el vídeo otra vez. – I want to watch the video again.
Querer can mean to love when it’s used with a person (or sometimes a pet):
- Quiero a mi familia. – I love my family.
- Te quiero. – I love you. (often slightly less intense than Te amo, depending on region)
When querer is followed by another verb in infinitive, like ver, comer, ir, etc., it means to want (to do something).