Why would you use 見えます instead of 見ます?


In the song イドラサーカス sung by 鏡音{かがみね}リン, there is the line,
「青{あお}い空{そら}が汚{よご}れて見{み}えますか？」I translated it using て as the present
continuous. "Can you see the blue sky becoming dirty?" Is my translation right
and, if so, why would you say 見{み}えます? Wouldn't you conjugate 見{み}ます using ます
form?




The verb you are seeing is
[見える](https://jisho.org/word/%E8%A6%8B%E3%81%88%E3%82%8B), which means either
"to be visible" or "to seem/appear/look". `te-form + 見える` usually means the
latter, "to appear to (have) ～" or "to appear as if ～".

>   * 彼が若返って見える。  
>  He looks as if he has gotten younger.
>   * まるで時間が止まって見える。  
>  It appears as if the time stopped.
>   * 青い空が汚れて見えますか？  
>  Does the blue sky appear to be dirty (to you)?
>




The verb you are seeing is
[見える](https://jisho.org/word/%E8%A6%8B%E3%81%88%E3%82%8B), which means either
"to be visible" or "to seem/appear/look". `te-form + 見える` usually means the
latter, "to appear to (have) ～" or "to appear as if ～".

>   * 彼が若返って見える。  
>  He looks as if he has gotten younger.
>   * まるで時間が止まって見える。  
>  It appears as if the time stopped.
>   * 青い空が汚れて見えますか？  
>  Does the blue sky appear to be dirty (to you)?
>

