Learn Italian: Magari tornasse la mia spensierata gioventù! - If only my carefree youth would return!

You're right! Magari often means "maybe" or "perhaps" when used with the indicative mood. However, when paired with the imperfect subjunctive like in this sentence, its meaning changes to an exclamation of desire, translating to "if only" or "I wish."

Why is tornasse in the imperfect subjunctive here?

In Italian, when you want to express a strong wish or something you hope would happen (even if it is unlikely), you can use magari followed by the imperfect subjunctive. Here, tornasse expresses that unfulfilled wish: "If only it would return!"

Why does the verb tornasse come before the subject la mia spensierata gioventù?

Italian has very flexible word order. Placing the subject at the end of the sentence builds anticipation and adds a poetic or dramatic emphasis to "my carefree youth." You could perfectly well say Magari la mia spensierata gioventù tornasse!, but putting the verb first sounds more passionate.

How does the word spensierata translate to "carefree"?

It comes from the noun pensiero (thought or worry). The prefix s- often acts like "without" or "un-", making spensierato literally mean "without worries." Since gioventù is a feminine noun, the adjective takes the feminine ending -a.