Love Story – English Lyrics

• By: Taylor Swift

Lyrics & Translation

Learn English through Taylor Swift's iconic song 'Love Story'! This song is special because it tells a classic story of forbidden love, inspired by Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet,' but with a modern, happy twist. By listening, you can learn descriptive vocabulary and storytelling techniques, all while enjoying a beautiful and hopeful song about a love that conquers all.

[English]

We were both young when I first saw you

I close my eyes and the flashback starts

I'm standing there

On a balcony, in summer air

See the lights, see the party, the ball gowns

See you make your way through the crowd

And say, "Hello"

Little did I know

That you were Romeo, you were throwing pebbles

And my daddy said, "Stay away from Juliet"

And I was crying on the staircase

Begging you, "Please don't go"

And I said

"Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone

I'll be waiting, all there's left to do is run

You'll be the prince, and I'll be the princess

It's a love story, baby, just say yes"

So I sneak out to the garden to see you

We keep quiet 'cause we're dead if they knew

So close your eyes

Escape this town for a little while, oh, oh

'Cause you were Romeo, I was a scarlet letter

And my daddy said, "Stay away from Juliet"

But you were everything to me

I was begging you, "Please don't go"

And I said

"Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone

I'll be waiting, all there's left to do is run

You'll be the prince, and I'll be the princess

It's a love story, baby, just say yes"

Romeo, save me, they're trying to tell me how to feel

This love is difficult, but it's real

Don't be afraid, we'll make it out of this mess

It's a love story, baby, just say yes

Oh, oh-oh

...

I got tired of waiting

Wondering if you were ever coming around

My faith in you was fading

When I met you on the outskirts of town

And I said

"Romeo, save me, I've been feeling so alone

I keep waiting for you, but you never come

Is this in my head? I don't know what to think"

He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring

And said

"Marry me, Juliet, you'll never have to be alone

I love you, and that's all I really know

I talked to your dad, go pick out a white dress

It's a love story, baby, just say yes"

Oh, oh-oh

Oh, oh-oh, oh

'Cause we were both young when I first saw you

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
young /jʌŋ/ A1	adjective - being in an early stage of life or development
eyes /aɪz/ A1	noun - organs used for seeing
summer /ˈsʌmər/ A1	noun - the warmest season of the year
lights /laɪts/ A1	noun - sources of illumination
crowd /kraʊd/ A2	noun - a large number of people gathered together
daddy /ˈdædi/ A2	noun - father
crying /ˈkraɪɪŋ/ A2	verb - shedding tears
waiting /ˈweɪtɪŋ/ A2	verb - staying in place until something happens
garden /ˈɡɑːrdn/ A2	noun - a plot of ground where plants are cultivated
town /taʊn/ A2	noun - an urban area that is smaller than a city
prince /prɪns/ B1	noun - a male member of a royal family
princess /ˈprɪnsɛs/ B1	noun - a female member of a royal family
story /ˈstɔːri/ B1	noun - an account of imaginary or real people and events told for entertainment
faith /feɪθ/ B2	noun - complete trust or confidence in someone or something
ring /rɪŋ/ B2	noun - a circular band worn as jewelry
dress /drɛs/ A2	noun - a garment for women

Key Grammar Structures

• Little did I know

  ➔ Inversion with negative adverbials

  ➔ The typical sentence structure is 'I did know little'. By starting with 'Little', which carries a negative sense, the auxiliary verb 'did' comes before the subject 'I'. This emphasizes the lack of awareness at the time. It is more formal and emphatic than the standard sentence structure.

• Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone

  ➔ Subjunctive Mood (Implied)

  ➔ While not explicitly using 'should' or 'would', the line expresses a desire or request that is contrary to fact. The implicit subjunctive suggests that they are not currently alone, and she is asking for that to change. It could be rephrased as 'Romeo, I wish you would take me somewhere we can be alone'. The "can" expresses possibility within the realm of this wish.

• all there's left to do is run

  ➔ Existential 'there' with reduced relative clause

  ➔ The sentence uses 'there' to indicate existence, meaning 'the only thing that remains is to run'. The full relative clause would be 'all (that) there is left to do is run'. The relative pronoun 'that' and the verb 'is' are omitted for brevity.

• We keep quiet 'cause we're dead if they knew

  ➔ Conditional Sentence (Type 2)

  ➔ This is a type 2 conditional. It describes a hypothetical situation in the present or future that is unlikely or contrary to fact. The 'if' clause uses the past simple ('knew'), and the main clause uses 'would' + base form of the verb ('we're dead'). Since the result is likely to happen , the result is "we're dead" instead of "we would be dead".

• Romeo, save me, they're trying to tell me how to feel

  ➔ Present Continuous for annoying habits

  ➔ While the present continuous usually describes an action happening now, it can also express annoyance at a repeated action. The line suggests that 'they' are *repeatedly* and annoyingly trying to dictate her feelings, not just a one-time occurrence.

• Wondering if you were ever coming around

  ➔ Embedded Question with 'if/whether'

  ➔ The sentence includes an embedded question, which is a question within a statement. Instead of asking directly 'Were you ever coming around?', it's phrased as 'Wondering if you were ever coming around'. 'If' (or 'whether') introduces the embedded question. The word order changes from the interrogative ('Were you...') to the affirmative ('you were...').