I Don't Want To Be A Bride – English Lyrics

• By: Vanessa Carlton

Lyrics & Translation

Discover a unique perspective on love with Vanessa Carlton's 'I Don't Want To Be A Bride.' This song challenges traditional expectations and encourages listeners to explore their own definitions of commitment. Learn about female empowerment and societal pressures while enjoying Carlton's signature piano-driven sound.

[English]

I like your company, got a fresh philosophy

Never knew such a gentleman

You could take me on a cheap vacation

I don't wanna have expectations

'Cause you could be the end of me

I don't need a house on a hill, a swing on a tree

A grandfather clock, porcelain for tea

A garden with rose and jasmine

Gonna get drunk on a bottle of wine

No better way to pass the time

Forever by your side

But I don't wanna be a bride

Apologies to your mother

I wanna be your girl

And spend this life with you

But I don't wanna wear white

You know it's too late for that

Can we keep the ever afterlife?

Could it be

Don't need no golden ring

It'd be no match for the love you'd bring

From London to Tennessee

We could catch a train to another life

On a whim under the moonlight

I promise you

Will you promise me?

Our last names on a wooden sign

Arm in arm where the river starts to wind

Forever by your side

But I don't wanna be a bride

Apologies to each other

I wanna be your girl

And spend this life with you

But I don't wanna wear white

Oh, you know it's too late for that

But can we keep the ever after?

Or could it be

Just you and me

We will live like kings under lavender skies, skies

We will live like kings under lavender skies, skies

We will build a poem we kept a rhyme

Wrapped our love in golden twine

We wrote, we wrote a legacy

Just you and me

Just you and me

We will...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
philosophy /fɪˈlɒsəfi/ B2	noun - the study of fundamental nature of knowledge, existence and values
gentleman /ˈdʒɛntəlmən/ B2	noun - a man of good and courteous conduct
vacation /veɪˈkeɪʃən/ A2	noun - a period of time spent away from home or work for rest or travel
expectations /ˌɛkspɛkˈteɪʃənz/ B2	noun - beliefs about what will happen in the future
bride /braɪd/ B1	noun - a woman on her wedding day
apologies /əˈpɒlədʒiz/ B1	noun - expressions of regret for an offense
love /lʌv/ A1	noun - deep affection
golden /ˈɡoʊldən/ B1	adjective - made of gold; having the colour of gold
lavender /ˈlævəndər/ C1	noun - a plant with fragrant purple flowers; a pale purple colour
legacy /ˈlɛgəsi/ C1	noun - something handed down from the past
promise /ˈprɒmɪs/ B1	noun - a declaration that one will do something verb - to assure someone that something will happen
forever /fɔːˈrɛvər/ B2	adverb - for all future time; eternally
afterlife /ˈæftəlaɪf/ C1	noun - life after death
rhyme /raɪm/ B2	noun - correspondence of sounds in words, especially at the end of lines
twine /twaɪn/ B2	noun - strong, thin cord or string verb - to twist together strands of something
moonlight /ˈmuːnlaɪt/ B2	noun - light from the moon
river /ˈrɪvər/ A1	noun - a natural flowing watercourse
sky /skaɪ/ A1	noun - the region of the atmosphere seen from Earth

Key Grammar Structures

• I don't wanna be a bride

  ➔ Contraction + Negation

  ➔ "don't" is a contraction of "do not" expressing negation. "wanna" is informal contraction of "want to".

• You could take me on a cheap vacation

  ➔ Modal Verb (Possibility)

  ➔ "could" expresses hypothetical possibility or polite suggestion.

• Gonna get drunk on a bottle of wine

  ➔ Informal Future Tense

  ➔ "gonna" (colloquial for "going to") expresses future intention or plan.

• No better way to pass the time

  ➔ Ellipsis + Comparative

  ➔ Omits "There is" (ellipsis). "better" is comparative adjective showing superiority.

• Can we keep the ever afterlife?

  ➔ Modal Verb (Permission) + Poetic Noun Phrase

  ➔ "Can" requests permission. "ever afterlife" is poetic compound noun meaning eternal existence.

• Don't need no golden ring

  ➔ Double Negative (Informal)

  ➔ "Don't...no" creates informal double negative for emphasis (meaning "don't need any").

• We could catch a train to another life

  ➔ Modal Verb (Hypothetical) + Metaphor

  ➔ "could" suggests hypothetical action. "another life" metaphorically represents new beginning.

• Will you promise me?

  ➔ Future Tense Question

  ➔ "Will" forms future tense question requesting commitment.

• We will live like kings under lavender skies

  ➔ Future Simple + Simile

  ➔ "will" expresses definite future action. "like kings" is simile showing comparison.

• Wrapped our love in golden twine

  ➔ Past Simple Passive + Metaphor

  ➔ Passive structure "wrapped" describes action done to subject. "golden twine" metaphorically represents precious bond.