tarokun wrote:Well I thought the root word for "to see" is miru, and its potential form is mirareru, not mieru. Is mieru another word that is not grammatically related to miru at all?
Actually, some people (not sure if they're really japanese) told me online that the word mieru is not a word at all but rather a shortened form that people use when they speak. It is like the "word" wakanai, a shortened form of the actual word wakaranai, which people find easier to say without the 'ra'.
Can someone who has a definitive answer confirm or deny this claim?
Yes. From what I recall:
見える=to be able to see (without intent)
見られる=to be able to see (with intent)
Sometimes 見られる is shortened to 見れる.
The words defy easy translation, but you're best to think of 見られる as "can watch"/"can look at"; and 見える as "(can) see"/"appears (to be)".
So translate this sentence into Japanese:
"If you have ten dollars, you can watch a movie."
Which one should you use?
見られる is correct.
Let's look at the difference:
１０ドルを持っていると、映画が見られる。= "If you have ten dollars, you can watch a movie."
１０ドルを持っていると、映画が見える。= "If you have ten dollars, you will see a movie (i.e. a movie will appear before your eyes.)"
So there's a big difference. #2 is stranger than hell.
That said, most of the time you want to use 見える as the potential form of 見る.
犬が見える。 = "I (can) see a dog."/犬は見えない。= "I don't/can't see any dogs."
It is also used to describe appearances.
あなたは悲しく見える。= "You look sad."/あなたは悲しくは見えない。= "You don't look sad."
I can't help you with the etymology of the words though.
