Merry Christmas Baby – English Lyrics

• By: Otis Redding

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the soulful charm of Otis Redding's "Merry Christmas, Baby," a timeless classic that captures the essence of holiday romance. Dive into the lyrics to explore expressions of love, gratitude, and the simple joys of Christmas, all while enriching your English vocabulary and cultural understanding.

[English]

Merry Christmas, baby

Sure do treat me nice

Merry Christmas, baby

Sure do treat me nice

You bought me a diamond ring for Christmas

I feel like I'm in paradise

I feel mighty fine, y'all

I've got music on my radio

Feel mighty fine, girl

I've got music on my radio, oh, oh, oh

I feel like I'm gonna kiss you

Standing beneath that mistletoe

Santa came down the chimney

Half past three, y'all

Left all them good ole presents

For my baby and for me, ha, ha, ha

Merry Christmas, baby

Sure do treat me nice

You bought me all those good ole presents

I love you, baby, rest of my life

Merry Christmas, girl

Merry, merry, merry Christmas, baby

Sure do treat me nice

Merry Christmas, baby

I said you sure do treat me nice

You bought all those lovely things, yeah

I feel like I'm in paradise

I wish you a merry Christmas, baby

Happy new year, ha

A merry Christams, honey

Everything here is beautiful

I love you, baby

For everything that you give me

I love you, honey

Mo, Lord have mercy

A merry Christams, honey

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
merry /ˈmeri/ A2	adjective - cheerful and lively
Christmas /ˈkrɪsməs/ A1	noun - the annual Christian festival celebrating Christ's birth, held on December 25
baby /ˈbeɪbi/ A1	noun - a very young child noun - a term of endearment
treat /triːt/ B1	verb - behave towards someone or deal with something in a specified way
nice /naɪs/ A1	adjective - pleasant; agreeable; satisfactory
diamond /ˈdaɪəmənd/ B1	noun - a precious stone consisting of a clear and colorless crystalline form of pure carbon
ring /rɪŋ/ A1	noun - a circular band, typically made of precious metal and worn on a finger
paradise /ˈpærədaɪs/ B2	noun - an ideal or idyllic place or state
music /ˈmjuːzɪk/ A1	noun - vocal or instrumental sounds (or both) combined in such a way as to produce beauty of form, harmony, and expression of emotion
radio /ˈreɪdiəʊ/ A1	noun - the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves
kiss /kɪs/ A1	verb - touch or caress with the lips as a sign of love, sexual desire, or reverence
mistletoe /ˈmɪsltəʊ/ B2	noun - a plant with yellowish flowers and white berries, traditionally used as a Christmas decoration
Santa /ˈsæntə/ A1	noun - Santa Claus
chimney /ˈtʃɪmni/ A2	noun - a vertical channel or pipe that conducts smoke and combustion gases up from a fire or furnace and typically through the roof of a building.
presents /ˈprezənts/ A2	noun - a thing given to someone as a gift
love /lʌv/ A1	verb - have a strong feeling of affection for someone
happy /ˈhapi/ A1	adjective - feeling or showing pleasure or contentment
year /jɪər/ A1	noun - the time it takes the earth to travel around the sun
beautiful /ˈbjuːtɪfl/ A2	adjective - pleasing the senses or mind aesthetically
give /ɡɪv/ A1	verb - freely transfer the possession of (something) to (someone)

Key Grammar Structures

• Sure do treat me nice

  ➔ Emphasis with "do"

  ➔ The auxiliary verb "do" is used here for emphasis. While grammatically correct, it's a colloquial way of stressing that she "treats" him well. The standard form would be "You really treat me nice" or "You treat me very nice".

• I feel like I'm in paradise

  ➔ Subjunctive Mood (Present Unreal)

  ➔ The phrase "feel like" can be followed by a clause expressing a hypothetical situation. The present subjunctive, although often omitted in spoken English, is implied: "I feel like I "were" in paradise". The use of "am" is common in informal speech.

• I've got music on my radio

  ➔ Use of "got" as a substitute for "have"

  ➔ "I've got" is a common contraction of "I have got", which is equivalent to "I have" in this context, indicating possession. "I have got" is more common in British English than American English.

• Standing beneath that mistletoe

  ➔ Present Participle as an Adverbial Modifier

  ➔ "Standing" is a present participle functioning as an adverbial modifier, describing the circumstance under which he feels like kissing her. It could be expanded to a full clause: "While I am standing beneath that mistletoe..."

• Left all them good ole presents

  ➔ Non-Standard Pronoun Usage: "them" as a determiner

  ➔ In standard English, "them" is a pronoun, but here it's used as a determiner (like "those"), which is non-standard but common in some dialects. The standard form would be "Left all those good old presents". "Ole" is an archaic spelling of "old".

• I love you, baby, rest of my life

  ➔ Ellipsis (Omission of 'for the')

  ➔ The phrase "rest of my life" implies "for the rest of my life". The omission of "for the" is common in informal speech and song lyrics.