Como Una Novela – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: Los Acosta

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

Our life was always like a novel

...

You never knew how to understand my tenderness

I’m no longer surprised

By your woman’s tricks

...

A novel so hard to tell

That we wrote, chapters of love

My heart

Cried out in pain

I, as an actor, was terrible

You, as an actress, the best

You acted well

For so long, I believed you

In your role, you’re unique

I just applaud

I was the loser

Because I still love you

...

A novel so romantic and so cruel

Written with my tears, I know

But I don’t complain

This is my fate

I, as an actor, was terrible

You, as an actress, the best

You acted well

For so long, I believed you

In your role, you’re unique

I just applaud

I was the loser

Because I still love you

...

[Spanish]

Una novela nuestra vida siempre fue

Nunca supiste mis ternuras comprender

Ya no me extrañan

Tus trampas de mujer

Una novela tan difícil de contar

Que escribimos, capítulos de amor

Mi corazón

Lloraba de dolor

Yo como actor, fui pésimo

Tú como actriz, lo máximo

Fingiste bien

Por tanto tiempo, yo te creí

En tu papel, sos única

Yo solamente aplaudo

El perdedor fui yo

Pues aún te amo

Una novela tan romántica y tan cruel

Que fue escrita con mis lágrimas, lo sé

Más no me quejo

Mi destino así es

Yo como actor, fui pésimo

Tú como actriz, lo máximo

Fingiste bien

Por tanto tiempo, yo te creí

En tu papel, sos única

Yo solamente, aplaudo

El perdedor fui yo

Pues aún te amo

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
novela /noˈβela/ A2	noun - story told in book form or drama, usually romantic or dramatic
vida /ˈbiða/ A1	noun - life, existence
ternura /teɾˈnuɾa/ B2	noun - tenderness, affection, gentle feeling
trampa /ˈtɾampa/ B1	noun - trap, deceit, cheating action
mujer /muˈxeɾ/ A1	noun - woman, female person
corazón /koɾaˈson/ A2	noun - heart, both literally and metaphorically for emotions
dolor /doˈloɾ/ A2	noun - pain, suffering
actor /akˈtoɾ/ A2	noun - actor, a person performing a role
actriz /akˈtɾiθ/ or /akˈtɾis/ A2	noun - actress, female performer
destino /desˈtino/ B1	noun - fate, destiny, destination
lágrima /ˈlaɣɾima/ A2	noun - tear from the eye, often from sadness
perdedor /peɾdeˈðoɾ/ B1	noun - loser, one who lost something or someone
fingir /finˈxiɾ/ B1	verb - to pretend, to fake emotions or actions
creer /kɾeˈeɾ/ A2	verb - to believe, to think something is true
amar /aˈmaɾ/ A2	verb - to love deeply
romántico /roˈmantiko/ B2	adjective - romantic, expressing love or affection
cruel /kɾuˈel/ B2	adjective - cruel, causing emotional or physical pain

Key Grammar Structures

• Una novela nuestra vida siempre fue

  ➔ Past tense of 'ser' (to be)

  ➔ The verb 'fue' is the past tense of 'ser', indicating a past state or condition. Here, it describes that 'our life was like a novel'.

• Nunca supiste mis ternuras comprender

  ➔ Preterite of 'saber' (to know) with infinitive

  ➔ 'Supiste' is the preterite of 'saber', and 'comprender' is an infinitive verb. This construction is used to express a past action that was not completed or was unsuccessful. Here, it means 'you never knew how to understand my tenderness'.

• Yo como actor, fui pésimo

  ➔ Past tense of 'ser' with adjective

  ➔ 'Fui' is the past tense of 'ser', and 'pésimo' is an adjective. This construction describes a past state or condition. Here, it means 'I, as an actor, was terrible'.

• Tú como actriz, lo máximo

  ➔ Use of 'lo' as a neutral pronoun

  ➔ 'Lo' is used here as a neutral pronoun to emphasize the superlative 'máximo'. It means 'you, as an actress, were the best'.

• El perdedor fui yo

  ➔ Use of 'el' as a subject pronoun

  ➔ 'El' is used here as a subject pronoun to refer to 'yo' (I). It emphasizes the subject of the sentence. Here, it means 'I was the loser'.