I am unfamiliar with this expression, but I'm curious as to what it means and
when it's used.

> 外ばっか見てる

If I were to try and translate it literally, it would be something like "I can
only watch outside", but I believe it must have some Idiomatic meaning?
Perhaps it's like how we say "I can only watch from a distance" in English? In
any case an explanation would be much appreciated!
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2017-06-07T13:09:38.543
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question
meaning expressions
What does the expression "外ばっか見てる" mean?
> 外ばっか見てる

The tacit subject of the phrase is **_you_** not **_I_** like:

**あなたは** 外ばっか見てる = **あなたは** 外ばかり見ている

in the context like:

私は、あなたに私をじっと見てほしい。なのに（= しかし）、あなたは、 **外ばっか見てる** 。 私、さみしいわ。
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2017-06-07T13:55:34.440
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> 外ばっか見てる

If you were to translate this literally, it should be "I am watching only
outside". There should be no `can`. 見てる is the contraction of 見ている, where いる
is a [subsidiary verb](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/18952/5010) that
denotes an action in progress (i.e., "be ～ing"). Of course the subject is not
specified, so the same sentence can mean "You are watching only outside" or
"She is watching only outside" or anything, depending on the context.

There is no idiomatic meaning here, but a sentence like this typically implies
the person is bored and/or distracted.
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2017-06-07T21:14:58.007
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answer