explicaba

Explicaba is the imperfect indicative form of the Spanish verb explicar, used to describe past actions that were ongoing, habitual, or providing background in a narrative. It can indicate that someone was in the process of explaining, or that an explanation occurred regularly in the past. The form also appears in reported speech and in descriptions of scenes set in the past.

Conjugation: In the imperfect, explicar takes the stem explic- plus the endings -aba, -abas, -aba, -ábamos, -abais, -aban. Therefore "explicaba" corresponds to yo explicaba or él/ella/usted explicaba. This form is distinct from the present tense (explico, explicas, explica, etc.) and from the future (explicaré) or the imperfect subjunctive (explicara).

Usage notes: Explicaba is used to convey an ongoing or repeated explanation in the past, to set a scene, or to describe how someone used to explain something. It can appear in clauses such as “El profesor explicaba la lección con paciencia” or “Yo explicaba el concepto cuando sonó la campana.” It is not a future or imperative form, and it differs from subjunctive or conditional forms by its indicative mood and imperfect tense.

Etymology: Explicaba derives from the verb explicar, which comes from Latin explicare, from ex- "out" + plicare "to fold" or "to unfold," meaning to unfold or make clear.