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to watch
Colloquial for watching or looking on; to follow something with your eyes without intervening or participating yourself.
Statt nur zuzugucken, könntest du auch mit anpacken!
Instead of just watching, you could also lend a hand!
'Zugucken' (to watch) is a separable verb. The prefix 'zu-' comes at the end in a main clause. In subordinate clauses, the verb stays together, and in the infinitive with 'zu', 'zu' comes between the prefix and the verb.
Ich gucke dir beim Kochen zu.
I am watching you cook.
'Zugucken' (to watch) is colloquial. The base verb 'gucken' (to look/watch) is also informal. In more formal situations, 'zusehen' or 'zuschauen' are more appropriate.
Komm, wir gucken dem Maler bei der Arbeit zu.
Come on, let's watch the painter at work.
When you watch a person or thing, that person or thing is in the dative. You can also use the preposition 'bei' to describe the activity you are watching.
Kann ich dir kurz zugucken?
Can I watch you for a moment?
to look at / to watch
'sich etwas ansehen' and 'zugucken' can both mean that you follow something with your eyes. 'sich etwas ansehen' is often used for films, plays, videos, or also things that you look at deliberately. 'zugucken' is colloquial and emphasizes that you are not taking part yourself, but only watching. The words can be confused when talking about an event or an action. For a film, people usually say 'ansehen'. For a person who is doing something, 'zugucken' often fits better.
Beim Training guckt Max nur zu, weil sein Knie noch weh tut.
Max is only watching during training because his knee still hurts.
Heute Abend sehen wir uns das Fußballspiel im Fernsehen an.
Tonight we are watching the football match on TV.