Iridescent – English Lyrics

• By: Linkin Park
• Album: A Thousand Suns

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into Linkin Park's "Iridescent," a deeply emotional rock ballad that transcends its cinematic ties. This song, with its profound lyrics about overcoming desperation and finding hope, offers a rich landscape for English language learners. Its clear, evocative storytelling and powerful vocal delivery make it an excellent choice to grasp nuanced expressions of resilience and human emotion in English.

[English]

When you were standing in the wake of devastation

When you were waiting on the edge of the unknown

And with the cataclysm raining down, insides crying, "Save me now"

You were there, impossibly alone

Do you feel cold and lost in desperation?

You build up hope, but failure's all you've known

Remember all the sadness and frustration

And let it go

...

Let it go

...

And in a burst of light that blinded every angel

As if the sky had blown the heavens into stars

You felt the gravity of tempered grace, falling into empty space

No one there to catch you in their arms

Do you feel cold and lost in desperation?

You build up hope, but failure's all you've known

Remember all the sadness and frustration

And let it go

...

Let it go

...

Let it go

...

Let it go

...

Let it go

...

Let it go

...

Do you feel cold and lost in desperation?

You build up hope, but failure's all you've known

Remember all the sadness and frustration

And let it go

Let it go

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
devastation /ˌdɛvəˈsteɪʃən/ C1	noun - great destruction or damage
unknown /ʌnˈnoʊn/ B2	adjective - not known or familiar
cataclysm /ˈkætəˌklɪzəm/ C2	noun - a large-scale and violent event in the natural world
gravity /ˈɡrævɪti/ B2	noun - the force that attracts a body toward the center of the earth
desperation /ˌdɛspəˈreɪʃən/ B2	noun - a state of despair, typically one that results in rash or extreme behavior
hope /hoʊp/ A2	noun - a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen
failure /ˈfeɪljər/ B1	noun - lack of success
sadness /ˈsædnəs/ B1	noun - the condition of being sad
frustration /frʌˈstreɪʃən/ B2	noun - the feeling of being upset or annoyed as a result of being unable to change or achieve something
light /laɪt/ A1	noun - the natural agent that stimulates sight and makes things visible
burst /bɜrst/ B1	noun - a sudden, intense occurrence
empty /ˈɛmpti/ A2	adjective - containing nothing; not filled or occupied
alone /əˈloʊn/ A2	adjective - having no one else present

Key Grammar Structures

• When you were standing in the wake of devastation

  ➔ Past continuous tense

  ➔ The phrase uses the past continuous tense to describe an ongoing action in the past.

• Do you feel cold and lost in desperation?

  ➔ Present simple tense

  ➔ The present simple tense is used to ask about a current state or feeling.

• You build up hope, but failure's all you've known

  ➔ Present perfect tense

  ➔ The present perfect tense indicates an action that has relevance to the present.

• And let it go

  ➔ Imperative mood

  ➔ The imperative mood is used to give commands or make requests.

• As if the sky had blown the heavens into stars

  ➔ Past perfect tense

  ➔ The past perfect tense is used to describe an action that was completed before another action in the past.

• You felt the gravity of tempered grace

  ➔ Simple past tense

  ➔ The simple past tense is used to describe an action that occurred at a specific time in the past.

• No one there to catch you in their arms

  ➔ Infinitive phrase

  ➔ The infinitive phrase is used to express purpose or intention.