My Girl – English Lyrics

• By: The Temptations

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the soulful world of "My Girl" by The Temptations, a timeless Motown anthem that perfectly captures the euphoria of deep affection. Its clear, heartfelt lyrics and iconic melodies, featuring a memorable guitar riff and distinctive bassline, make it an excellent song for English language learners to appreciate expressive vocabulary and the harmonious sounds of classic American music.

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
sunshine /ˈsʌnʃaɪn/ B1	noun - the light and heat that come from the sun
cloudy /ˈklaʊdi/ A2	adjective - covered with clouds
cold /koʊld/ A1	adjective - having a low temperature
month /mʌnθ/ A1	noun - a period of about four weeks; one of the twelve parts into which the year is divided
May /meɪ/ A1	noun - the fifth month of the year
feel /fiːl/ A1	verb - to experience an emotion or sensation
girl /ɡɜːrl/ A1	noun - a female child or young woman
honey /ˈhʌni/ A2	noun - a sweet, sticky, yellowish-brown fluid made by bees
bees /biːz/ A2	noun - a flying insect that makes honey
envy /ˈenvi/ B2	verb - to want something that someone else has noun - a feeling of discontented or resentful longing aroused by someone else's possessions, qualities, or luck.
sweeter /ˈswiːtər/ A2	adjective - having a pleasant taste like that of sugar; more sweet than something else
song /sɔːŋ/ A1	noun - a piece of music with words that you sing
birds /bɜːrdz/ A1	noun - a warm-blooded vertebrate animal of a class distinguished by having feathers, wings, typically able to fly
trees /triːz/ A1	noun - a woody perennial plant, typically having a single stem or trunk growing to a considerable height and bearing lateral branches at some distance from the ground.
money /ˈmʌni/ A1	noun - a current medium of exchange in the form of coins and banknotes; collectively wealth
fortune /ˈfɔːrtʃən/ B2	noun - a large amount of money or assets
fame /feɪm/ B2	noun - the state of being known or talked about by many people
riches /ˈrɪtʃɪz/ B2	noun - material wealth
claim /kleɪm/ B1	verb - state or assert that something is the case, typically without providing evidence or proof

Key Grammar Structures

• I've got sunshine on a cloudy day

  ➔ Present Perfect (I've got = I have got)

  ➔ Uses the present perfect to express that the speaker *has* sunshine, implying a present state resulting from a past event or situation. The contracted form "I've" is common in spoken and informal contexts. It's equivalent to "I have" got, which can also be understood as just 'I have' in this context.

• What can make me feel this way

  ➔ Modal Verb (can) + Question Formation

  ➔ The structure uses "can" as a modal verb indicating ability or possibility. The inverted word order (can + subject) is used to form a question. "This way" is an adverbial phrase modifying "feel".

• The bees envy me

  ➔ Simple Present Tense

  ➔ The simple present is used to describe a general truth or a habitual action. In this case, it's a metaphorical statement, but the grammar remains the same.

• I've got a sweeter song Than the birds in the trees

  ➔ Comparative Adjective ('sweeter') + 'Than' conjunction

  ➔ "Sweeter" is the comparative form of "sweet," used to compare the speaker's song to that of the birds. "Than" introduces the element being compared against.

• I don't need no money, fortune, or fame

  ➔ Double Negative (don't need no)

  ➔ While grammatically incorrect in formal English (the correct form would be "I don't need any money"), the double negative "don't need no" is used for emphasis, and is common in some dialects and song lyrics. It functions as a strong negation.

• I've got all the riches baby one man can claim

  ➔ Relative Clause with implied 'that' (one man can claim)

  ➔ "One man can claim" is a relative clause modifying "riches". The relative pronoun "that" (or "which") is often omitted when it functions as the object of the relative clause verb. The implied sentence is "I've got all the riches baby *that* one man can claim".