De adolescente imaginaba que vivir cerca de un volcán sería emocionante.

to be

Breakdown of De adolescente imaginaba que vivir cerca de un volcán sería emocionante.

• yo: I
• que: that
• cerca de: near

Questions & Answers about De adolescente imaginaba que vivir cerca de un volcán sería emocionante.

What does de adolescente literally mean, and why is it used instead of cuando era adolescente?

Literally, de adolescente is like saying as a teenager or when (I was) a teenager.

• The preposition de here means in the role/stage of.
• Spanish often uses de + noun to talk about phases or roles in life:
  • De niño = as a child / when I was a child
  • De joven = as a young person
  • De adulto = as an adult

You could also say cuando era adolescente, and it would be correct.
De adolescente is just a shorter, very natural way to set the time frame in Spanish, especially in storytelling.

Who is the subject of imaginaba? Why is there no yo?

The understood subject is yo (I).

Spanish is a pro-drop language: subject pronouns (yo, tú, él, etc.) are often omitted because the verb ending already tells you who the subject is.

• imaginaba (imperfect, 1st person singular) → I imagined / I used to imagine

You can say Yo, de adolescente, imaginaba que…, but the yo is usually only added for emphasis or contrast. Native speakers often leave it out when it’s obvious from context.

Why is imaginaba in the imperfect tense and not imaginé?