褪黑素 – Bilingual Lyrics Chinese/English

• By: Giang Hạo Nam (江皓南)

Lyrics & Translation

“褪黑素” (Melatonin) by Giang Hạo Nam offers a deeply emotional journey through love and loss, making it an excellent song for Mandarin learners. Its evocative lyrics and melancholic melody provide rich vocabulary related to emotions, memory, and heartbreak, allowing learners to grasp nuanced expressions while appreciating a modern Chinese ballad. The song's introspective nature and relatable theme of post-breakup struggle make it a compelling piece to delve into the language and culture.

[English]

I feel like I'm getting sick

Always trapped in nightmares

The more I try to forget, the more I want to see you

How can I explain it, how can I sober up, how can I forget?

I once had the most brilliant moments

You were briefly in my life

Finally, I've returned to the quiet of being alone

Listening to old piano tunes, returning to the past

The past won't let go, in the darkness of night

I miss you so much

I couldn't kick the habit of you

And I lost myself in the process

Melatonin is so much like you

Soothing my nerves

I've just become addicted

I can't accept losing you

I can't listen to anyone else's advice

Stubbornly piecing together memories

The more I fear the night, the slower dawn arrives

Repeatedly listening to the song you loved the most

I still feel so sorry

Only after losing you do I understand the bigger picture

I desperately want to escape from your city

After all, your scent lingers everywhere

The past won't let go, in the darkness of night

I miss you so much

I couldn't kick the habit of you

And I lost myself in the process

Melatonin is so much like you

Soothing my nerves

I've just become addicted

I can't accept losing you

I still can't find you in my sleeplessness

I faintly hear your voice

Lost in a maze, going around in circles

I can't see the future

But the past is becoming increasingly clear

I want to devour the memories, desperately wanting to escape

I rely on melatonin, I rely on you

Having you is becoming more and more addictive

The past won't let go, in the darkness of night

I miss you so much

I couldn't kick the habit of you

And I lost myself in the process

Melatonin is so much like you

Soothing my nerves

I've just become addicted

I can't accept losing you

[Chinese]

我好像得了什么病

总是被困在噩梦里

越是想忘记就越想见到你

怎么说明 怎么清醒 怎么失忆

有过最辉煌的事情

生命里短暂有过你

终于又回到一个人的安静

听着钢琴老旧金曲 回到过去

过去过不去 在黑夜里

我好想好想你

没能戒掉你

也丢掉我自己

褪黑素很像是你

安抚我的神经

只是上了瘾

就不接受失去

听不进旁人的建议

固执着拼凑着回忆

越怕黑夜黎明越缓慢降临

循环聆听 你最爱听那首歌曲

还是会感到对不起

失去才理解大道理

很想要逃离出你的城市里

毕竟哪里都散落你的气息

过去过不去 在黑夜里

我好想好想你

没能戒掉你

也丢掉我自己

褪黑素很像是你

安抚我的神经

只是上了瘾

就不接受失去

还找不到你在失眠里

隐约听到你的声音

循环在迷宫里

看不清未来

却对过去越来越清晰

想吃掉回忆 渴望逃离

依赖褪黑素 依赖你

拥有你这事情越来越上瘾

过去过不去 在黑夜里

我好想好想你

没能戒掉你

也丢掉我自己

褪黑素很像是你

安抚我的神经

只是上了瘾

就不接受失去

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
病 /bìng/ A2	noun - illness, sickness
噩梦 /èmèng/ B1	noun - nightmare
忘记 /wàngjì/ A2	verb - to forget
清醒 /qīngxǐng/ B1	adjective - sober, clear-headed verb - to be sober
失忆 /shīyì/ B1	verb - to lose one's memory, amnesia noun - amnesia
辉煌 /huīhuáng/ B2	adjective - brilliant; glorious
生命 /shēngmìng/ A2	noun - life
安静 /ānjìng/ A2	adjective - quiet; peaceful
过去 /guòqù/ A1	noun - the past
黑夜 /hēiyè/ A2	noun - night
戒掉 /jièdiào/ B1	verb - to quit; to give up
丢掉 /diūdiào/ A2	verb - to throw away; to lose
神经 /shénjīng/ B1	noun - nerve; nerves
瘾 /yǐn/ B2	noun - addiction
建议 /jiànyì/ A2	noun - suggestion verb - to suggest
固执 /gùzhí/ B1	adjective - stubborn
回忆 /huíyì/ A2	noun - memory verb - to recall; to reminisce
黎明 /límíng/ B1	noun - dawn
歌曲 /gēqǔ/ A2	noun - song
城市 /chéngshì/ A1	noun - city
气息 /qìxī/ B1	noun - breath; scent; atmosphere
失眠 /shīmián/ B1	verb - to suffer from insomnia noun - insomnia
声音 /shēngyīn/ A1	noun - sound; voice
迷宫 /mígōng/ B1	noun - maze
未来 /wèilái/ A1	noun - future
清晰 /qīngxī/ B1	adjective - clear
渴望 /kěwàng/ B1	verb - to yearn for; to desire noun - yearning; desire
依赖 /yīlài/ A2	verb - to rely on
拥有 /yōngyǒu/ A2	verb - to possess; to have

Key Grammar Structures

• 我好像得了什么病

  ➔ Use of '好像' (hǎoxiàng) indicating supposition/semblance.

  ➔ The sentence expresses a feeling of being unwell, using '好像' to soften the statement. It's not a definite diagnosis, but a feeling of being sick. The structure is Subject + '好像' + Verb + Object.

• 越是想忘记就越想见到你

  ➔ Use of '越...越...' (yuè...yuè...) structure for correlative clauses expressing intensification.

  ➔ This sentence demonstrates a paradoxical situation: the more he tries to forget her, the more he wants to see her. The '越...越...' structure emphasizes this intensifying cycle. The structure is 'The more... the more...'

• 听着钢琴老旧金曲 回到过去

  ➔ Use of gerund/participle phrase ('听着钢琴老旧金曲') functioning as an adverbial clause of time.

  ➔ The sentence describes the act of listening to old piano songs *while* returning to the past. '听着钢琴老旧金曲' describes the action happening concurrently with '回到过去'.

• 失去才理解大道理

  ➔ Use of '才' (cái) indicating 'only then' or 'it wasn't until...that...' structure.

  ➔ This sentence conveys the idea that he only understood the bigger picture *after* losing her. The '才' emphasizes that understanding came as a result of the loss.