maggots for brains – English Lyrics

• By: Olivia Rodrigo
• Album: you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

My day was so mundane

I don't think I left the house

Drank a pot of coffee

Tried to write, nothing came out

Somehow it's the weekend

I'm still bored out of my skull

And I went to a party

But only on principle

Empty, look at me

I'm a zombie in my body

I'm a train off of the track

I feel dirty, I feel rotten

And the colors are all flat

I'm a sad shell of a woman

And I've got maggots for brains

But that's just the thing that happens

When my

When my baby goes away

When my baby goes away

He goes away

Everything feels moldy

Like the fruit that's in my fridge

And everything that's funny

I wish I could tell to him

And sometimes at a low point

I even wish for a tragedy

'Cause I know he'd come over

And take real good care of me

It's weird, he's not here

I'm a zombie in my body

I'm a train off of the track

I feel dirty, I feel rotten

And the colors are all flat

I'm a sad shell of a woman

And I've got maggots for brains

But that's just the thing that happens

When my

When my baby goes away

When my baby goes away

He goes away

What can I do

But think of you

But think of you

What can I do

But think of you

But think of you

I'm a zombie in my body

I'm a train off of the track

I feel dirty, I feel rotten

And the colors are all flat

I'm a sad shell of a woman

And I've got maggots for brains

But that's just the thing that happens

When my

When my baby goes away

What can I do

But think of you

But think of you

What can I do

But think of you

But think of you

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
mundane /mʌnˈdeɪn/ C1	adjective - lacking interest or excitement; dull
zombie /ˈzɒmbi/ B2	noun - a person who is or appears lifeless, apathetic, or completely unresponsive
rotten /ˈrɒtən/ B1	adjective - suffering from decay; very bad or unpleasant
maggots /ˈmæɡəts/ C2	noun - a soft-bodied legless larva, especially that of a fly
moldy /ˈməʊldi/ B2	adjective - covered with or smelling of mold
tragedy /ˈtrædʒədi/ B2	noun - an event causing great suffering, destruction, and distress
principle /ˈprɪnsəpəl/ B2	noun - a fundamental truth or proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of belief
bored /bɔːrd/ A2	adjective - feeling weary and restless through lack of interest
shell /ʃel/ A2	noun - an outer covering; used metaphorically for an empty state of a person
dirty /ˈdɜːrti/ A1	adjective - covered or marked with an unclean substance
track /træk/ A2	noun - a rail line; used in the idiom 'off the track'
flat /flæt/ A2	adjective - lacking interest or emotion; dull
coffee /ˈkɒfi/ A1	noun - a hot drink made from the roasted seeds of a coffee tree
weekend /ˈwiːkend/ A1	noun - Saturday and Sunday
weird /wɪəd/ B1	adjective - suggesting something supernatural; very strange

Key Grammar Structures

• I don't think I left the house

  ➔ Negative construction with 'think' (Opinion negation)

  ➔ In English, when expressing negative opinions, we usually negate the main verb 'think' rather than the subordinate clause.

• I'm still bored out of my skull

  ➔ Idiomatic Adjective Phrase (Intensifier)

  ➔ The phrase "bored out of my skull" uses a figurative intensifier to express extreme boredom.

• And I went to a party, But only on principle

  ➔ Prepositional phrase expressing motive

  ➔ The phrase "on principle" explains the reason for an action, indicating it was done because of a belief or rule.

• But that's just the thing that happens

  ➔ Relative clause with 'that'

  ➔ Here, 'that' acts as a relative pronoun defining 'the thing', connected to the action that follows.

• I wish I could tell to him

  ➔ Subjunctive mood for unreal wishes

  ➔ The structure 'wish + clause' uses the past tense (could) to express a desire for a situation that is not currently true.

• 'Cause I know he'd come over

  ➔ Conditional 'would' in the second conditional

  ➔ 'He'd come over' is short for 'He would come over', indicating a hypothetical result if a condition were met.

• What can I do But think of you

  ➔ Use of 'but' as a preposition (meaning 'except')

  ➔ In this context, 'but' means 'except' or 'otherwise than', showing that thinking of the person is the only option.