MA GUEULE – Bilingual Lyrics French/English

• By: JOHNNY HALLYDAY

Lyrics & Translation

[French]

[English]

Quoi ma gueule?

What's with my face?

Qu'est-ce qu'elle a ma gueule?

What's wrong with my face?

Quelque chose qui n'va pas?

Is there something wrong?

Elle ne te revient pas?

Is it because of you?

Oh, je sais que tu n'as rien dit

Oh, I know you didn't say a thing

C'est ton œil que je prends au mot

It's your eyes I'm taking at face value

Souvent un seul regard suffit

Sometimes just one look is enough

Pour vous planter mieux qu'un couteau

To cut you better than a knife

Quoi, ma gueule?

What's with my face?

Qu'est-ce qu'elle a ma gueule?

What's wrong with my face?

Si tu veux t'la payer

If you want to pay me back

Viens, je rends la monnaie

Come on, I'll give it right back

T'as rien dit, tu l'as déjà dit

You said nothing, you've already said it

On n'va pas y passer la nuit

We won't spend the night on this

Ma gueule et moi, on est d'sortie

My face and I, we're out

On cherchait plutôt des amis

We were just looking for friends

Quoi, ma gueule?

What's with my face?

Mais qu'est-ce qu'elle a ma gueule?

But what's wrong with my face?

Quoi, ma gueule?

What's with my face?

Qu'est-ce qu'elle a ma gueule?

What's wrong with my face?

...

...

Quoi, ma gueule?

What's with my face?

Qu'est-ce qu'elle a ma gueule?

What's wrong with my face?

Oui, elle a une grande gueule

Yeah, she’s got a big mouth

Oui, elle me fait la gueule

Yeah, she’s giving me the cold shoulder

Elle s'imagine que j'lui dois tout

She thinks I owe her everything

Sans elle, je n'aurais jamais plané

Without her, I’d never have soared

Sans elle, je n'vaudrai pas un clou

Without her, I wouldn’t be worth a damn

Ma gueule a bien l'droit de rêver

My face has every right to dream

Quoi, ma gueule?

What's with my face?

Qu'est-ce qu'elle a ma gueule?

What's wrong with my face?

De galères en galères

From one trouble to the next

Elle a fait toutes mes guerres

She’s fought all my wars

Chaque nuit blanche, chaque jour sombre

Every sleepless night, every dark day

Chaque heure saignée y est ridée

Every bleeding hour, scarred deep inside

Elle ne m'a pas lâché d'une ombre

She never let me go, not even a shadow

Quand j'avais mal, même qu'elle pleurait

When I was hurting, she’d even cry

Quoi, ma gueule?

What's with my face?

Mais qu'est-ce qu'elle a ma gueule?

But what's wrong with my face?

Quoi, ma gueule?

What's with my face?

Qu'est-ce qu'elle a ma gueule?

What's wrong with my face?

...

...

Quoi, ma gueule?

What's with my face?

Qu'est-ce qu'elle a ma gueule?

What's wrong with my face?

Je m'en fous qu'elle soit belle

I don’t care if she’s beautiful

Au moins elle est fidèle

At least she’s faithful

C'est pas comme une que je connais

Not like some girl I know

Une qui me laisse crever tout seul

One who leaves me to die alone

Mais je n'veux même pas en parler

But I don’t even want to talk about it

Une qui se fout bien

One who couldn’t care less

De ma gueule

About my face

...

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
gueule /ɡœl/ B2	noun - mouth, face
question /ˈkwɛstjɔ̃/ B2	noun - a sentence or phrase expressing doubt, curiosity, or request for information
regard /ʁə.ɡaʁ/ B2	noun - a look or gaze
main /mɛ̃/ A2	noun - hand
vie /vi/ B2	noun - life
lune /lyn/ C1	noun - moon
amour /a.muʁ/ B2	noun - love
fille /fij/ A2	noun - girl
joie /ʒwa/ B2	noun - joy
mort /mɔʁ/ B2	noun - death
ciel /sjɛl/ C1	noun - sky
nuit /nɥi/ B2	noun - night
heure /œʁ/ B2	noun - hour
vie /vi/ B2	noun - life

Key Grammar Structures

• Quoi ma gueule? Qu'est-ce qu'elle a ma gueule?

  ➔ Interrogative Pronoun 'quoi' and Informal Language

  ➔ "Quoi" is used here instead of "Qu'est-ce que" to introduce the question in an informal way. "Ma gueule" is a very informal term for "my face" or, more broadly, "my self". The repeated question shows a confrontational attitude.

• Elle ne te revient pas?

  ➔ Indirect Object Pronoun 'te' and Negative Question

  ➔ "Te" is an indirect object pronoun meaning "to you". The structure is asking "Doesn't it appeal to you?". Negative questions can imply surprise or challenge.

• Souvent un seul regard suffit Pour vous planter mieux qu'un couteau

  ➔ Subjunctive Mood (Impersonal), Comparative Adverb 'mieux', 'que' as a comparative

  ➔ "Suffit" is used impersonally and requires the subjunctive after "que" in some situations (though here, the indicative is more common). "Mieux qu'un couteau" is a comparison using the adverb "mieux" (better) and "que" to introduce the comparison. The sentence means: "Often a single look is enough to stab you better than a knife."

• Si tu veux t'la payer, Viens, je rends la monnaie

  ➔ Conditional Clause with 'si', Pronoun 'la' as direct object, Imperative Mood

  ➔ "Si tu veux t'la payer" is a conditional clause meaning "If you want to mess with it/her/me". "La" is a direct object pronoun referring back to "ma gueule". "Viens, je rends la monnaie" is an imperative statement meaning "Come, I'll give you change (i.e., I'll pay you back)".

• Elle s'imagine que j'lui dois tout

  ➔ Reflexive Verb 's'imaginer', Subjunctive Mood (optional), Indirect Object Pronoun 'lui'

  ➔ "S'imagine" is a reflexive verb meaning "she imagines". The verb of the subordinate clause after “que” is sometimes in the subjunctive mood here. "Lui" is an indirect object pronoun, meaning "to her". The sentence translates to "She imagines that I owe her everything".

• Elle a fait toutes mes guerres

  ➔ Past Tense (Passé Composé), Possessive Adjective

  ➔ "Elle a fait" is the passé composé (past tense) of the verb "faire" (to do, to make). "Mes guerres" uses the possessive adjective "mes" meaning "my".

• C'est pas comme une que je connais

  ➔ Relative Pronoun 'que', Negative Construction

  ➔ "Que" is a relative pronoun introducing a relative clause that modifies "une". "C'est pas comme une que je connais" translates to: "It's not like one that I know". "Pas" is used for negation with "ne" often omitted in informal speech.