Ai Meu Amor Se Bastasse – Bilingual Lyrics Portuguese/English

• By: ALDINA DUARTE

Lyrics & Translation

Experience the emotional depth of Portuguese Fado with Aldina Duarte's "Ai Meu Amor Se Bastasse." This song offers a beautiful expression of love and yearning, allowing listeners to connect with the nuances of Portuguese sentiment and musicality.

[English]

Oh, my love, if it were enough

To know that I love you so much

And every time I sang

Oh, my love, if it were enough

To know that it's for you that I sing

And every time I sang

Oh, my love, if it were enough

To know that it's for you that I sing

Oh, my love, if it were enough

What I can achieve by singing

And even if I didn't sing

Oh, my love, if it were enough

What I don't say when I speak

And even if I didn't sing

Oh, my love, if it were enough

What I don't say when I speak

Oh, my love, if it were enough

I know that it's not enough for you

And in the life that I spent

By singing, I noticed

That our life is worn out

And in the life that I spent

By singing, I noticed

That our life is worn out

If what I have to give you

When I sing could reach you

If that could be enough

If singing were enough for me

Oh, my love, if it were enough

If that could be enough

If singing were enough for me

Oh, my love, if it were enough

...

[Portuguese]

Ai, meu amor, se bastasse

Saberes que eu te amo tanto

E cada vez que eu cantasse

Ai, meu amor, se bastasse

Saberes que é por ti que eu canto

E cada vez que eu cantasse

Ai, meu amor, se bastasse

Saberes que é por ti que eu canto

Ai, meu amor, se bastasse

O que a cantar eu consigo

E mesmo que eu não cantasse

Ai, meu amor, se bastasse

O que a falar eu não digo

E mesmo que eu não cantasse

Ai, meu amor, se bastasse

O que a falar eu não digo

Ai, meu amor, se bastasse

Eu saber que te não basta

E na vida que eu gastasse

A cantar, eu reparasse

Que a nossa vida está gasta

E na vida que eu gastasse

A cantar, eu reparasse

Que a nossa vida está gasta

Se o que eu tenho p'ra te dar

Quando eu canto te chegasse

Se isso pudesse bastar

Se me bastasse cantar

Ai, meu amor, se bastasse

Se isso pudesse bastar

Se me bastasse cantar

Ai, meu amor, se bastasse

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
amor /aˈmoɾ/ A2	noun - love, affection
cantar /kɐ̃ˈtaɾ/ A2	verb - to sing
vida /ˈvi.ðɐ/ A2	noun - life
gastar /ɡaʃˈtaɾ/ B1	verb - to spend (resources, time)
reparar /ʁɨpaˈɾaɾ/ B2	verb - to repair, to notice
bastar /bɐʃˈtaɾ/ B2	verb - to be enough, to suffice
saberes /saˈbɨɾɨʃ/ B2	noun - knowledge, learning
conseguir /kõSeˈɣiɾ/ B2	verb - to achieve, to manage to
conhecimento /kõɲeˈsimiɾtu/ B1	noun - knowledge
tanto /ˈtɐ̃t’u/ A2	adjective / adverb - so much, so many
pouco /ˈpɔku/ A2	adjective / adverb - little, a little
felicidade /fɨliˈsiˌðaðʒi/ B2	noun - happiness
bastasse /bɐʃˈtaʃ/ B2	verb - past subjunctive of bastar, meaning 'to suffice'

Key Grammar Structures

• Se bastasse

  ➔ Subjunctive mood expressing a hypothetical or wishful state, with 'se' meaning 'if' and 'bastasse' being the past subjunctive of 'bastar'.

  ➔ The phrase 'Se bastasse' uses the subjunctive mood to express a hypothetical condition, meaning 'if it were enough'.

• Saberes que eu te amo tanto

  ➔ Use of the verb 'saber' in the infinitive to mean 'to know', with a hypothetical nuance implying knowledge of love.

  ➔ The phrase 'Saberes que eu te amo tanto' suggests a knowing or understanding about love, emphasizing the emotional depth.

• E cada vez que eu cantasse

  ➔ Use of the imperfect subjunctive tense 'cantasse' to indicate an ongoing or repeated hypothetical action in the past.

  ➔ The phrase 'cada vez que eu cantasse' employs the imperfect subjunctive to express habitual or ongoing hypothetical actions in the past.

• Se o que eu tenho p'ra te dar

  ➔ Conditional clause introduced by 'Se' with a present tense verb phrase indicating a hypothetical or unreal situation.

  ➔ The phrase 'Se o que eu tenho p'ra te dar' forms a conditional sentence implying a hypothetical situation where what I have to give might be enough.