Ne Me Quitte Pas

• By: Jacques Brel

Lyrics:

[Français]

[English]

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Il faut oublier

You must forget

Tout peut s'oublier

Everything can be forgotten

Qui s'enfuit déjà

That already flees

Oublier le temps

Forget the time

Des malentendus

Of misunderstandings

Et le temps perdu

And the time lost

À savoir comment

Trying to figure out how

Oublier ces heures

Forget those hours

Qui tuaient parfois

That sometimes killed

À coups de pourquoi

With blows of "why"

Le cœur du bonheur

The heart of happiness

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Moi, je t'offrirai

I, I will offer you

Des perles de pluie

Pearls of rain

Venues de pays

Come from countries

Où il ne pleut pas

Where it doesn't rain

Je creuserai la terre

I will dig the earth

Jusqu'après ma mort

Until after my death

Pour couvrir ton corps

To cover your body

D'or et de lumière

With gold and light

Je ferai un domaine

I will make an estate

Où l'amour sera roi

Where love will be king

Où l'amour sera loi

Where love will be law

Où tu seras reine

Where you will be queen

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

...

...

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Je t'inventerai

I will invent for you

Des mots insensés

Nonsensical words

Que tu comprendras

That you will understand

Je te parlerai

I will tell you

De ces amants-là

About those lovers

Qui ont vu deux fois

Who saw twice

Leurs cœurs s'embraser

Their hearts ignite

Je te raconterai

I will tell you

L'histoire de ce roi

The story of that king

Mort de n'avoir pas

Who died from not having

Pu te rencontrer

Been able to meet you

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

On a vu souvent

We have often seen

Rejaillir le feu

The fire flare up again

De l'ancien volcan

From the old volcano

Qu'on croyait trop vieux

That we thought too old

Il est, paraît-il

It is said that there are

Des terres brûlées

Burned lands

Donnant plus de blé

Yielding more wheat

Qu'un meilleur avril

Than a better April

Et quand vient le soir

And when evening comes

Pour qu'un ciel flamboie

So that a sky may blaze

Le rouge et le noir

Don't red and black

Ne s'épousent-ils pas?

Get married?

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

...

...

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Je ne vais plus pleurer

I will no longer cry

Je ne vais plus parler

I will no longer speak

Je me cacherai là

I will hide there

À te regarder

To watch you

Danser et sourire

Dance and smile

Et à t'écouter

And to listen to you

Chanter et puis rire

Sing and then laugh

Laisse-moi devenir

Let me become

L'ombre de ton ombre

The shadow of your shadow

L'ombre de ta main

The shadow of your hand

L'ombre de ton chien

The shadow of your dog

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

Ne me quitte pas

Don't leave me

...

...

Vocabulary in this song:

Vocabulary	Meanings
quitte /kit/ B1	verb - to leave or abandon
oublier /ublije/ A2	verb - to forget
temps /tɑ̃/ A1	noun - time
cœur /kœʁ/ B1	noun - heart
bonheur /bɔnœʁ/ B2	noun - happiness
mots /mo/ A2	noun - words
lumière /lymjɛʁ/ B2	noun - light
danser /dɑ̃se/ A2	verb - to dance
sourire /suʁiʁ/ A2	verb - to smile
rire /ʁiʁ/ A1	verb - to laugh
mort /mɔʁ/ B1	noun - death
roi /ʁwa/ A2	noun - king
ombre /ɔ̃bʁ/ B2	noun - shadow
feu /fø/ B1	noun - fire
pays /pe/ A2	noun - country
pluie /plɥi/ A2	noun - rain

Grammar:

• Il faut oublier

  ➔ Using the impersonal construction with 'il faut' to express necessity or obligation.

  ➔ 'Il faut' means 'it is necessary to' or 'must'.

• Je t'inventerai

  ➔ Future tense of the verb 'inventer' with the pronoun 'te' indicating 'you' as the indirect object.

  ➔ 'Je t'inventerai' means 'I will invent for you'.

• On a vu souvent

  ➔ The expression 'on a vu' is a passé composé with 'avoir' indicating 'we/one has seen'.

  ➔ It means 'we/people have seen often'.

• Je ne vais plus pleurer

  ➔ Using 'ne plus' before the verb to mean 'no longer' or 'not anymore' in the present tense.

  ➔ 'Je ne vais plus pleurer' means 'I will no longer cry'.

• À te regarder

  ➔ The preposition 'à' followed by an infinitive verb used to express purpose or in this case, 'while watching you'.

  ➔ 'À te regarder' means 'while watching you'.

• L'ombre de ta main

  ➔ Noun phrase with 'de' indicating possession or relation, meaning 'the shadow of your hand'.

  ➔ 'L'ombre de ta main' means 'the shadow of your hand'.