Hello Goodbye – English Lyrics

• By: Charli XCX
• Album: BRAT

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into Charli XCX's "Hello goodbye," a poignant exploration of anxiety and self-sabotage. Through its raw lyrics and emotive delivery, you can learn English expressions related to fear, regret, and internal conflict, making it a powerful song to understand complex human emotions in a new language.

[English]

I don't know what's going on

Most of the time I'm out my mind

A nervous wreck, I said, "Goodbye"

And not "Hello," don't even know

Felt a little fear and some anxiety

The second you arrived and kind of smiled at me

My heart began to rise, I panicked quietly, so silently

I said, "Goodbye" before you came

I turned around and ran away

I was too scared, I should have said

"Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello, hello"

I said, "Goodbye" before you came

I turned around and ran away

I felt too scared, I should have said

"Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello, hello"

Now I'm all up in my head

Replaying all my worst regrets

I shot myself, I'm born to lose

Now all I do is think 'bout you

Felt a little fear and some anxiety

The second you arrived and kind of smiled at me

My heart began to rise, I'm freaking quietly, so silently (ooh)

I said, "Goodbye" before you came

I turned around and ran away

I was too scared, I should have said

"Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello, hello"

I said, "Goodbye" before you came

I turned around and ran away

I felt too scared, I should have said

"Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello, hello"

Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello, hello (goodbye)

Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello, hello (goodbye)

Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello, hello (I really don't know wh-y-y-y-y)

I said, "Goodbye" before you came

I turned around and ran away

I was too scared, I should have said

"Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello, hello"

I said, "Goodbye" before you came

I turned around and ran away

I felt too scared, I should have said

"Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello, hello"

Ooh-ooh, oh

Ooh-ooh, ooh, ooh-oh

Ooh-ooh-oh

Ooh-ooh, ooh, ooh-ooh

Ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh, ooh-oh

Ooh-ooh, ooh, ooh-oh

Ooh-ooh, oh

Ooh-ooh, ooh, ooh-oh

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
run /rʌn/ A1	verb - to move quickly on foot
scared /skɛərd/ A2	adjective - afraid or frightened
arrived /əˈraɪvd/ A2	verb - to reach a destination
panic /ˈpænɪk/ B1	verb - to feel sudden fear or anxiety noun - sudden fear or anxiety
anxiety /æŋˈzaɪəti/ B1	noun - a feeling of worry or unease
regret /rɪˈɡrɛt/ B1	noun - a feeling of sadness about something that happened verb - to feel sad about something that happened
smiled /smaɪld/ A2	verb - to have a happy or friendly expression on the face
rise /raɪz/ B1	verb - to move upward
freak /friːk/ B2	verb - to become very upset or frightened
wreck /rɛk/ B1	noun - something that has been badly damaged verb - to destroy or severely damage
silent /ˈsaɪlənt/ A2	adjective - making no sound
fear /fɪr/ A2	noun - an unpleasant emotion caused by danger or threat
lose /luːz/ A1	verb - to be unable to find something
think /θɪŋk/ A1	verb - to have ideas or opinions in the mind
heart /hɑːrt/ A1	noun - the organ that pumps blood around the body

Key Grammar Structures

• I don't know what's going on

  ➔ Present Simple negative contraction and embedded question

  ➔ The phrase "don't know" uses a negative contraction in present simple, and "what's going on" is an embedded question acting as a noun clause.

• Most of the time I'm out my mind

  ➔ Present Simple with contraction and idiomatic expression

  ➔ "I'm" is a contraction of "I am" in present simple, and "out my mind" is an idiomatic phrase meaning mentally distracted or crazy.

• A nervous wreck, I said, "Goodbye"

  ➔ Past simple tense and direct speech

  ➔ "I said" is past simple tense introducing direct speech of the word "Goodbye".

• My heart began to rise

  ➔ Past simple with infinitive verb form

  ➔ "Began" is past simple of "begin," followed by the infinitive verb "to rise" indicating the action started.

• I was too scared, I should have said

  ➔ Past modal perfect for regret

  ➔ "Should have said" is a past modal perfect structure used to express regret about a past action not taken.

• Replaying all my worst regrets

  ➔ Present participle used as a gerund

  ➔ "Replaying" is a present participle acting as a gerund to indicate continuous or habitual action.

• I really don't know wh-y-y-y-y

  ➔ Use of negative contraction and informal elongation for emphasis

  ➔ "Don't know" is a negative contraction, and "wh-y-y-y-y" is an informal elongation to stress the word "why."