María – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: Café Tacvba
• Album: Café Tacvba

Lyrics & Translation

Learning a language becomes a captivating experience with a song like 'María.' Its poetic lyrics and clear, narrative-driven story offer a beautiful way to explore Spanish vocabulary related to emotions like longing and regret. The song's blend of Mexican folk traditions with rock, and its mysterious, ghost-like story, make it a unique cultural artifact for any language learner to decipher and enjoy.

[English]

María goes out alone at night

Sorrow through the city

Wandering the streets that one day

Denied kisses in the dark

...

And her vision blurs, María

Because it hurts to remember

That the kisses denied, María

Will never return again

Ah ah

...

On the roads through the nights

Something strange might happen

Feeling the cold on your lips

Of other lips you will not see

...

It is María who suffers in the streets

And beneath a lamppost

Steals kisses and life from people

While she lies in a coffin

Ah ah

Pretty Maria

Withered Maria

...

[Spanish]

Sale sola de noche María

Pena por la ciudad

Recorriendo las calles que un día

Negó besos en la oscuridad

Y se nubla la vista María

Porque duele recordar

Que los besos negados María

Nunca mas regresarán

Ah ah

En las noches por ese camino

Algo extraño puede pasar

Al sentir en los labios el frío

De otros labios que no verás

Es María quien pena en las calles

Y debajo de un farol

Roba besos y vida a la gente

Mientras ella yace en un cajón

Ah ah

María bonita

María marchita

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
pena /ˈpena/ B1	noun - sorrow, sadness
sola /ˈsola/ A2	adjective - alone, solitary
ciudad /sjuˈðað/ A2	noun - city
calles /ˈkaʝes/ A2	noun - streets
besos /ˈbesos/ A2	noun - kisses
oscura /osˈkuɾa/ B1	adjective - dark, obscure
duele /ˈdwele/ B1	verb - hurts, pains
recordar /rekoɾˈðaɾ/ B2	verb - to remember
negados /neˈɣaðos/ B2	adjective - denied, refused
regresarán /reɣɾeˈsaɾan/ B2	verb - will return
extraño /ekˈstɾaɲo/ B2	adjective - strange, odd
pasar /paˈsaɾ/ B1	verb - to pass, to happen
frío /ˈfɾio/ A2	noun - cold
labios /ˈlaβjos/ A2	noun - lips
verás /beˈɾas/ A2	verb - you will see