El Gato Y Yo – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: Amanda Miguel
• Album: El Sonido Vol. 3

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the captivating world of Spanish with Amanda Miguel's iconic song, "El Gato Y Yo." This classic pop ballad, rich with playful metaphors and powerful vocals, offers a unique way to experience the nuances of romantic expression in Spanish. Through its engaging narrative of a woman's feline-like pursuit of love, you can explore common Spanish vocabulary related to emotions, actions, and even animal-related idioms, making language learning an enjoyable and memorable adventure. Its dramatic style and memorable lyrics make it a special piece for any language learner.

[English]

One of these nights

I'm going to snatch you

I'm going to seduce you

I'm going to corner you

Like a little cat, I'll arrive

With a leap to your balcony

And with my caresses, you'll see, I'll make you purr

Whether you want to or not, you'll be my mischievous cat

One of these nights

With my serenade

I'll show my claws

You won't escape me

With a hoarse meow

You'll finally tell me yes

A full moon will give us

The light for the feast

And on some rooftop, you and I

We'll make love

...

Paw in paw

Tail in the wind, off we go, you and I

And we'll dream of having

Kittens of every color

Whether you want to or not, you'll be my mischievous cat

Someone spoils

Our cat love

Because from above

A shoe fell on us

And from the rooftop, the cat and I

Tumbled off a balcony

What a tumble!

And once the fright passed, again

The feast begins

In the garden

Despite the shoe attack, seven lives

Our love has

...

[Spanish]

Una de estas noches

Yo voy a raptarte

Voy a seducirte

Voy a arrinconarte

Como una gatita llegaré

De un salto a tu balcón

Y con mis caricias ya verás que te hago ronronear

Quieras o no quieras tú serás mi gato malandrín

Una de estas noches

Con mi serenata

Mostraré las uñas

Tú no te me escapas

Con un maullidito ronco

Me dirás al fin que sí

Una luna llena nos dará

La luz para el festín

Y en algún tejado tú y yo

Haremos el amor

Pata con patita

Cola al viento vamos tú y yo

Y soñamos con tener

Gatitos de todo color

Quieras o no queras tú seras mi gato malandrín

Alguien nos arruina

Nuestro amor de gatos

Porque desde arriba

Nos cayó un zapato

Y desde el tejado el gato y yo

Rolamos un balcón

Qué confección

Y pasado el susto otra vez

Comienza el festín

En el jardín

Pese al zapatazo siete vidas

Tiene nuestro amor

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
raptar /rapˈtaɾ/ B2	verb - to kidnap, to abduct, to carry off by force
seducir /seðuˈθiɾ/ B2	verb - to seduce, to entice, to charm
arrinconar /arrinkoˈnaɾ/ B2	verb - to corner, to push into a corner, to marginalize
gato /ˈɡato/ A1	noun - cat (domestic animal)
balcón /balˈkon/ A2	noun - balcony
caricias /kaˈɾiθjas/ B1	noun - caresses, strokes, fondles (plural of 'caricia')
ronronear /ronɾoneˈaɾ/ B1	verb - to purr (of a cat), to rumble (of an engine)
malandrín /malanˈdɾin/ C1	noun - rascal, scoundrel, rogue adjective - mischievous, roguish
serenata /seɾeˈnata/ B1	noun - serenade
uñas /ˈuɲas/ A2	noun - nails (fingernails/toenails), claws (of an animal) (plural of 'uña')
maullido /mawˈʎiðo/ B1	noun - meow, cat's cry
ronco /ˈroŋko/ B1	adjective - hoarse, husky (voice); deep, rumbling (sound)
festín /fesˈtin/ B1	noun - feast, banquet
tejado /teˈxaðo/ B1	noun - roof (especially a tiled roof)
pata /ˈpata/ A2	noun - paw, leg (of an animal or furniture); (informal) foot (of person)
cola /ˈkola/ A1	noun - tail (of an animal); queue, line; glue
soñar /soˈɲaɾ/ A2	verb - to dream
arruinar /arruiˈnaɾ/ B1	verb - to ruin, to spoil, to destroy
zapato /θaˈpato/ A1	noun - shoe
susto /ˈsusto/ B1	noun - fright, scare, shock
zapatazo /θapaˈtaθo/ C1	noun - blow with a shoe; kick with a shoe

Key Grammar Structures

• Yo voy a raptarte

  ➔ "Ir a" + Infinitive (Periphrastic Future) + Attached Object Pronoun

  ➔ The phrase "voy a raptarte" expresses a near future action or intention. The object pronoun "te" (you) is attached to the infinitive "raptar" (to abduct).

• Como una gatita llegaré

  ➔ Simple Future Tense + "Como" (Comparison)

  ➔ The verb "llegaré" (from 'llegar') is in the simple future tense, indicating an action that will happen. "Como" is used to make a comparison, meaning "like" or "as".

• Y con mis caricias ya verás que te hago ronronear

  ➔ Causative Verb "Hacer" + Infinitive + Object Pronoun

  ➔ "te hago ronronear" is a causative construction where "hacer" means "to make" or "to cause" someone to do something (in this case, "ronronear" - to purr). "te" is the indirect object pronoun.

• Quieras o no quieras tú serás mi gato malandrín

  ➔ Subjunctive Mood (Concessive Clause) + Simple Future Tense

  ➔ "Quieras o no quieras" uses the present subjunctive to express a concessive idea, meaning "whether you want to or not". "serás" is in the simple future, indicating certainty.

• Tú no te me escapas

  ➔ Reflexive Verb + Dative of Interest / Redundant Pronoun + Present Tense for Future Certainty

  ➔ "escapas" is from the reflexive verb 'escaparse'. "te" is the reflexive pronoun. "me" is a dative of interest, indicating the action affects the speaker (e.g., "you won't escape *from me*"). The present tense is used here to express strong certainty about a future event.

• Me dirás al fin que sí

  ➔ Simple Future Tense + Indirect Object Pronoun

  ➔ "dirás" is the simple future tense of "decir" (to say/tell). "Me" is the indirect object pronoun, meaning "to me" or "for me".

• Y soñamos con tener Gatitos de todo color

  ➔ Verb + Preposition + Infinitive

  ➔ "soñamos con tener" shows a common verb-preposition combination, 'soñar con' (to dream about/of), followed by an infinitive "tener" (to have). "de todo color" uses 'de' to describe variety.

• Porque desde arriba Nos cayó un zapato

  ➔ Preposition "Desde" + Preterite Tense + Indirect Object Pronoun

  ➔ "Desde arriba" indicates a starting point or origin ("from above"). "cayó" is the preterite tense of 'caer' (to fall), denoting a completed action in the past. "Nos" is an indirect object pronoun, meaning "to us" or "on us".

• Qué confección

  ➔ Exclamatory Phrase with "Qué"

  ➔ "Qué" followed by a noun (like "confección") forms an exclamatory phrase, expressing surprise, admiration, or sometimes ironic disapproval, similar to "What a...!" in English.

• Pese al zapatazo siete vidas Tiene nuestro amor

  ➔ Concessive Phrase "Pese a" + Present Tense

  ➔ "Pese al zapatazo" uses the concessive phrase "Pese a" (or "a pesar de"), meaning "despite" or "in spite of", to introduce a contrast. "Tiene" is in the present tense.