Misery Business

• By: Paramore
• Album: RIOT!

Lyrics:

Vocabulary in this song:

Vocabulary	Meanings
misery /ˈmɪzəri/ B2	noun - a state of great unhappiness or suffering
time /taɪm/ A1	noun - the indefinite continued progress of existence and events in the past, present, and future regarded as a whole
run /rʌn/ A1	verb - to move at a speed faster than a walk
caught /kɔːt/ A2	verb - past tense of catch; to seize or capture
wait /weɪt/ A1	verb - to stay where one is or delay action until a particular time or event
free /friː/ A2	adjective - not under the control or power of someone else verb - to release from captivity or restraint
lie /laɪ/ A2	verb - to not tell the truth
fire /ˈfaɪər/ A1	noun - a state, process, or instance of combustion in which fuel or other material is ignited and combined with oxygen, giving off light, heat, and flame
wear /wer/ A1	verb - to have clothing on one's body
smile /smaɪl/ A1	noun - an expression of happiness or amusement verb - to have an expression of happiness
brag /bræɡ/ B2	verb - to say something in a boastful manner
steal /stiːl/ B1	verb - to take (another person's property) without permission or legal right and without intending to return it
good /ɡʊd/ A1	adjective - to be desired or approved of
matter /ˈmætər/ A2	verb - to be important or significant noun - a subject or situation under consideration
change /tʃeɪndʒ/ A1	verb - to make or become different noun - the act or instance of making or becoming different
sorry /ˈsɒri/ A1	adjective - feeling regret or penitence
innocent /ˈɪnəsnt/ B1	adjective - not guilty of a crime or offense
dream /driːm/ A2	noun - a series of thoughts, images, and sensations occurring in a person's mind during sleep verb - to indulge in a daydream or fantasy

Grammar:

• I'm in the business of misery

  ➔ Present Simple Tense (to be)

  ➔ Uses the present simple "am" (the form of "to be" for "I") to state a current state or general truth. "I'm" is a contraction of "I am."

• She's got a body like an hourglass, it's ticking like a clock

  ➔ Present Perfect Simple (have got), Simile

  ➔ "She's got" is an informal way of saying "She has got", equivalent to "She has". It describes a physical feature she possesses. The phrase "like an hourglass" and "like a clock" is a simile, comparing her body shape to an hourglass and the urgency of the situation to a ticking clock.

• When I thought he was mine, she caught him by the mouth

  ➔ Past Simple Tense, Past Continuous (Implied)

  ➔ "Thought" and "caught" are in the past simple tense, indicating completed actions in the past. The implicit past continuous describes the ongoing situation, "I was thinking he was mine."

• Two weeks and we had caught on fire

  ➔ Past Perfect Simple

  ➔ "Had caught" uses the past perfect to indicate an action completed *before* another point in the past (presumably when the narrator realized their relationship was intense quickly).

• Whoa, I never meant to brag

  ➔ Past Simple Tense (negative), Infinitive of Purpose

  ➔ "Never meant" uses the past simple negative form to express that she didn't intend to brag in the past. "To brag" is an infinitive showing the purpose she *didn't* have.

• But God, does it feel so good

  ➔ Emphasis using Auxiliary Verb 'does'

  ➔ The word "does" is used here for emphasis. Usually we would say, "it feels so good", but adding "does" makes it more emphatic.

• Once a whore, you're nothing more

  ➔ Present Simple (to be), Generalization

  ➔ Uses the present simple "are" to express a generalization. The phrase presents a viewpoint as a universal truth. "You're" is a contraction of "you are."

• Looking as innocent as possible to get to who

  ➔ Comparison (as...as), Infinitive of Purpose

  ➔ "As innocent as possible" is a comparison showing the maximum degree of innocence they try to project. "To get" shows the purpose of their actions.

• And if you could, then you know you would

  ➔ Second Conditional (Implied)

  ➔ This line is a shortened form of a second conditional sentence. The full sentence would be: "If you could [steal him away], then you know you would [steal him away]." It expresses a hypothetical situation and its likely result.