Basket Case – English Lyrics

• By: Green Day
• Album: Dookie

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the raw and energetic world of Green Day's "Basket Case" – a quintessential pop-punk anthem that perfectly captures the chaos and confusion of anxiety. By exploring its direct and relatable lyrics about mental health and self-doubt, you'll gain insight into everyday expressions of inner turmoil and the authentic language of personal struggle. This song's powerful blend of intense emotion and catchy melodies makes it a unique and impactful way to experience English through music.

[English]

♪ Do you have the time to listen to me whine ♪

♪ About nothing and everything all at once? ♪

♪ I am one of those ♪

♪ Melodramatic fools ♪

♪ Neurotic to the bone ♪

♪ No doubt about it ♪

♪ Sometimes I give myself the creeps ♪

♪ Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me ♪

♪ It all keeps adding up ♪

♪ I think I'm cracking up ♪

♪ Am I just paranoid ♪

♪ Or am I just stoned? ♪

♪ I went to a shrink ♪

♪ To analyze my dreams ♪

♪ She says it's lack of sex that's bringing me down ♪

♪ I went to a whore ♪

♪ He said my life's a bore ♪

♪ So quit my whining 'cause it's bringing her down ♪

♪ Sometimes I give myself the creeps ♪

♪ Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me ♪

♪ It all keeps adding up ♪

♪ I think I'm cracking up ♪

♪ Am I just paranoid? ♪

♪ Ah, yeah, yeah, yeah ♪

♪ Grasping to control ♪

♪ So I better hold on ♪

♪♪

♪ Sometimes I give myself the creeps ♪

♪ Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me ♪

♪ It all keeps adding up ♪

♪ I think I'm cracking up ♪

♪ Am I just paranoid? ♪

♪ Or am I just stoned? ♪

♪♪

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
listen /ˈlɪs.ən/ B1	verb - to pay attention with the ear
whine /waɪn/ B2	verb - to complain or protest in a high, annoying voice
nothing /ˈnʌθ.ɪŋ/ A1	noun - not anything
everything /ˈɛvrɪˌθɪŋ/ A2	pronoun - all things
melodramatic /ˌmɛl.ə.drəˈmæt.ɪk/ C1	adjective - exaggerated emotional behavior or style
neurotic /nʊˈrɒt.ɪk/ B2	adjective - having a tendency to be anxious or emotionally unstable
crazy /ˈkreɪ.zi/ B1	adjective - mentally deranged or insane
crack /kræk/ B2	verb - to break or cause to break
paranoid /ˈpær.ə.nɔɪd/ B2	adjective - feeling of suspicion or mistrust without cause
shrink /ʃrɪŋk/ B2	verb - to become smaller or cause to become smaller
analyze /ˈæn.ə.laɪz/ B2	verb - to examine in detail
dreams /driːmz/ B2	noun - series of images, ideas, or emotions occurring during sleep
bore /bɔːr/ B2	noun - something dull or uninteresting
hold /hoʊld/ A2	verb - to grasp or grip
control /kənˈtroʊl/ B1	noun - power to influence or direct behavior or situations
hold on /hoʊld ɒn/ B1	phrase - to wait or persist

Key Grammar Structures

• Do you have the time to listen to me whine

  ➔ Present simple tense for asking about availability.

  ➔ The phrase "Do you have" is used to inquire about someone's availability.

• I think I'm cracking up

  ➔ Present continuous tense to describe an ongoing action.

  ➔ The phrase "I'm cracking up" indicates that the speaker feels they are losing their sanity.

• Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me

  ➔ Present simple tense to express habitual actions.

  ➔ The word "Sometimes" indicates that this happens occasionally, not all the time.

• I went to a shrink

  ➔ Past simple tense to describe a completed action.

  ➔ The phrase "I went" indicates that the action of going happened in the past.

• She says it's lack of sex that's bringing me down

  ➔ Present simple tense for reporting speech.

  ➔ The phrase "She says" indicates that the speaker is quoting someone else's words.

• So quit my whining 'cause it's bringing her down

  ➔ Imperative mood to give a command.

  ➔ The word "quit" is used here as a command to stop whining.

• Am I just paranoid or am I just stoned?

  ➔ Interrogative form to ask questions.

  ➔ The phrase "Am I" is used to ask about the speaker's state of mind.