Death – English Lyrics

• By: White Lies

Lyrics & Translation

Embark on a lyrical journey into introspection and human fears with White Lies' 'Death.' This compelling track offers an excellent opportunity to dive into English, with its evocative vocabulary describing anxiety and contemplation. Its powerful, dramatic soundscape, coupled with deeply personal and relatable themes of mortality and loss, makes it a special song that encourages a deeper connection with the language and its emotional nuances.

[English]

I love the feeling when we lift off

Watching the world so small below

I love the dreaming when I think of

The safety in the clouds out my window

I wonder what keeps us so high up

Could there be a love beneath these wings?

If we suddenly fall should I scream out

Or keep very quiet and cling to

My mouth as I'm crying?

So frightened of dying

Relax, yes, I'm trying

But fear's got a hold on me

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

C'mon

(Music)

I love the quiet of the nighttime

When the sun is drowned in the deathly sea

I can feel my heart beating as I speed from

The sense of time catching up with me

The sky's set out like a pathway

But who decides which route we take?

As people drift into a dreamworld

I close my eyes as my hands shake

And when I see a new day

Who's driving this anyway?

I picture my own grave

'Cause fear's got a hold on me

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

Let me hear

(Yes, this fear's got a hold on me)

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

Floating neither up or down

I wonder when I'll hit the ground

Will the earth beneath my body shake

And cast your sleeping hearts awake?

Could it tremble stars from moonlit skies?

Could it drag a tear from your cold eyes?

I live on the right side, I sleep in the left

That's why everything's got to be love or death

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

Yes, this fear's got a hold on me

Thank you, thank you so much

(Music fades)

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
fear /fɪər/ A2	noun - an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat. verb - be afraid of (someone or something) as likely to be dangerous, painful, or threatening.
death /dɛθ/ A2	noun - the permanent cessation of all vital functions; the end of life.
hold /hoʊld/ A1	verb - grasp, carry, or support (something). noun - a grip or grasp; control or influence (as in 'got a hold on me').
fall /fɔːl/ A1	verb - move downwards, typically rapidly and freely without control, from a higher to a lower level. noun - an act of falling or collapsing.
shake /ʃeɪk/ A2	verb - (of a person or part of the body) tremble or vibrate typically as a result of fear, excitement, or weakness. noun - an act of shaking or being shaken.
grave /ɡreɪv/ B1	noun - a place of burial for a dead body, typically a hole dug in the ground and covered by a mound or a stone.
ground /ɡraʊnd/ A1	noun - the solid surface of the earth.
tremble /ˈtrɛmbəl/ B1	verb - shake involuntarily, typically as a result of anxiety, excitement, or frailty. noun - an involuntary quivering movement.
scream /skriːm/ A2	verb - utter a loud, sharp, piercing cry. noun - a long, loud, piercing cry expressing extreme emotion or pain.
frightened /ˈfraɪtənd/ A2	adjective - feeling fear or worry.
drown /draʊn/ B1	verb - die through submersion in and inhalation of water; (figurative) to be overwhelmed by or immersed in something.
sea /siː/ A1	noun - the expanse of salt water that covers most of the earth's surface and surrounds its landmasses.
heart /hɑːrt/ A1	noun - a hollow muscular organ that pumps the blood through the circulatory system; (figurative) the seat of one's emotions or character.
awake /əˈweɪk/ A2	adjective - not asleep. verb - stop sleeping; wake up.
moonlit /ˈmuːnlɪt/ B2	adjective - lit by the moon.
drag /dræɡ/ B1	verb - pull (someone or something) along forcefully, roughly, or with difficulty.
cold /koʊld/ A1	adjective - of or at a low temperature; (figurative) lacking affection or warmth of feeling.
wings /wɪŋz/ A2	noun - a limb or appendage of an animal, used for flying; (figurative) a part of a structure that projects from the main part, such as on an aircraft.
clouds /klaʊdz/ A1	noun - a visible mass of condensed watery vapour floating in the atmosphere, typically high above the general level of the ground.
safety /ˈseɪfti/ A2	noun - the condition of being protected from or unlikely to cause danger, risk, or injury.

Key Grammar Structures

• I "love" the feeling when we lift off

  ➔ Present simple tense + adverbial time clause introduced by "when"

  ➔ The verb "love" is in the present simple to express a general feeling, and "when we lift off" is a time clause showing when the feeling occurs.

• I "wonder" what keeps us so high up

  ➔ Indirect question (embedded question) using "what" + present simple

  ➔ The verb "wonder" introduces an indirect question; "what keeps" is the embedded clause in the present simple.

• If we suddenly fall "should" I scream out

  ➔ First conditional clause with modal verb "should" + inversion for a question

  ➔ "Should" is a modal verb used after an "if" clause to ask for advice or a suggestion, and the subject‑verb order is inverted to form a question.

• Or keep very quiet and cling to my mouth as I "am" crying

  ➔ Present continuous (am crying) with "as" clause expressing simultaneity

  ➔ "am" + "crying" forms the present continuous to show an ongoing action, and "as" introduces a clause that happens at the same time.

• "Fear's" got a hold on me

  ➔ Present perfect (has got) contracted as "'s"; expresses a state that started in the past and continues

  ➔ "'s" is the contracted form of "has" in the present perfect, showing that the feeling of fear began earlier and still affects the speaker.

• When the sun "is" drowned in the deathly sea

  ➔ Passive voice (is drowned) in the present simple

  ➔ "is" + past participle "drowned" forms the passive voice, showing that the sun receives the action of being drowned rather than performing it.

• "Can" I feel my heart beating as I speed from

  ➔ Modal verb "can" expressing ability/possibility; present simple after modal; gerund "beating" after noun "heart"

  ➔ "Can" is a modal verb that introduces a question about ability; after a modal, the main verb stays in base form. "Beating" is a gerund functioning as the object of "feel".

• "That's" why everything's got to be love or death

  ➔ Causal clause "that's why" + modal "got to" (have to) expressing necessity

  ➔ "That's" is a contraction of "that is"; the phrase "that's why" introduces a reason, and "got to" (informal for "have to") conveys a strong sense of obligation.

• "Floating" neither up or down

  ➔ Present participle used as a verbless clause (adverbial) describing a state

  ➔ "Floating" functions as a present participle phrase that gives a background description without a finite verb.