I Really Want You – English Lyrics

• By: James Blunt
• Album: All The Lost Souls

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the emotional depth of James Blunt's "I Really Want You," a song that beautifully captures the universal feeling of longing and miscommunication. For language learners, the song's clear and repetitive chorus provides a great opportunity to practice pronunciation and understand the nuances of expressing desire and frustration. The lyrical journey from personal romantic struggle to broader themes of past regrets offers a unique and compelling way to expand your emotional vocabulary in English.

[English]

Many prophets preach on bended knee

Many clerics wasted wine

Do the bloodied sheets on those cobbled streets mean

I have wasted time

Are there silver shores on paradise?

Can I come in from the cold?

I killed a man in a far away land

My enemy I'm told

I really want you to really want me

But I really don't know if you can do that (I really want you)

I know you want to know what's right

But I know it's so hard for you to do that (I really want you)

And time's running out as often it does

And often dictates that you can't do that (I really want you)

But fate can't break this feeling inside

That's burning up through my veins

I really want you

I really want you

I really want you

Now

No matter what I say or do

The message isn't getting through

And you're listening to the sound

Of my breaking heart

I really want you

I really want you

Is a poor man rich in solitude

Or will mother earth complain

Did the beggar pray for a sunny day but

Lady luck for rain

They say a million people bow and scrape

To an effigy of gold

I saw life begin

On the ship we're in

Then history unfold

I really want you to really want me

But I really don't know if you can do that (I really want you)

I know you want to know what's right

But I know it's so hard for you to do that (I really want you)

And time's running out as often it does

And often dictates that you can't do that (I really want you)

Fate can't break this feeling inside

That's burning up through my veins

I really want you

I really want you

I really want you

Now

No matter what I say or do

The message isn't getting through

And you're listening to the sound

Of my breaking heart

No matter what I say or do

The message isn't getting through

And you're listening to the sound

Of my breaking heart

...

Key Grammar Structures

• Many prophets preach on bended knee

  ➔ Present Simple Tense

  ➔ The verb 'preach' is in the present simple tense, indicating a habitual or general action.

• Do the bloodied sheets on those cobbled streets mean I have wasted time

  ➔ Present Simple with 'do' for emphasis

  ➔ The auxiliary verb 'do' is used to emphasize the main verb 'mean'.

• I really want you to really want me

  ➔ Double infinitive after 'want'

  ➔ The phrase uses a double infinitive ('to really want') to express a desire for a reciprocal action.

• But I really don't know if you can do that

  ➔ Modal verb 'can' for ability

  ➔ The modal verb 'can' is used to express possibility or ability.

• That's burning up through my veins

  ➔ Present continuous for ongoing action

  ➔ The present continuous tense ('is burning') describes an action happening now.

• No matter what I say or do

  ➔ Conditional clause with 'no matter'

  ➔ The phrase 'no matter what' introduces a conditional clause, indicating that the following action is true regardless of circumstances.

• And you're listening to the sound of my breaking heart

  ➔ Present continuous for current action

  ➔ The present continuous tense ('are listening') is used to describe an action happening at the moment of speaking.