Burn The House Down – English Lyrics

• By: AJR
• Album: OK ORCHESTRA

Lyrics & Translation

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
burn /bɜrn/ B2	verb - to ignite and consume with fire
house /haʊs/ A2	noun - a building for human habitation
line /laɪn/ A2	noun - a length marked by points, dots, or dashes
serve /sɜːrv/ B2	verb - to provide something for use
hide /haɪd/ A2	verb - to put out of sight
fight /faɪt/ A2	noun - a violent struggle verb - to use physical force to try to hurt or gain control
truth /truːθ/ B2	noun - the real facts about something
stranger /ˈstreɪndʒər/ B2	noun - a person you do not know
manage /ˈmænɪdʒ/ B1	verb - to succeed in doing something
trick /trɪk/ B1	noun - a clever or cunning action or scheme
truthful /ˈtruːθfəl/ C1	adjective - telling the truth consistently
refresh /rɪˈfrɛʃ/ B2	verb - to update or renew
notice /ˈnoʊtɪs/ A2	noun - a written or printed statement that gives information
serve /sɜːrv/ B2	verb - to provide service or assistance

Key Grammar Structures

• Used to keep it cool

  ➔ "Used to" + infinitive

  ➔ "Used to" describes a past habit or state that is no longer true.

• Watcha gonna do?

  ➔ Informal contraction of "What are you going to do?"

  ➔ "Watcha" is a very informal contraction often used in speech and songs. It is a faster, colloquial way of asking someone's intentions.

• No one's gonna listen to me

  ➔ Negative pronoun + "gonna" (future)

  ➔ "No one" is the negative pronoun. "Gonna" is a shortened form of "going to", indicating future action. The full sentence would be "No one is going to listen to me."

• Will they let me sing on TV?

  ➔ Modal verb "will" + subject + verb (interrogative form)

  ➔ This is a question using the modal verb "will" to ask about future possibility or permission.

• We gon' burn the whole house down

  ➔ "Gon'" (slang) for "going to" + infinitive

  ➔ "Gon'" is a slang contraction of "going to", expressing a future intention. It is even more informal than "gonna".

• You're only serving lies

  ➔ Present continuous tense (with "only" as an adverb)

  ➔ The present continuous tense, "are serving", indicates an action happening right now or around this time. "Only" emphasizes that this is the *sole* thing being done.

• You've got something to hide

  ➔ Present perfect tense (have/has + past participle) implied.

  ➔ "You've got" is a more informal way of saying "You have got", which itself is a variation of the present perfect. It implies that you have something to hide *now* as a result of something that occurred in the past.

• Should I march with every stranger from Twitter to get shit done?

  ➔ Modal verb "should" + subject + infinitive (interrogative) + "to get shit done" (purpose)

  ➔ "Should" expresses a suggestion or advice. "To get shit done" uses an infinitive of purpose (though very informal) to indicate the reason for marching.