Next Thing You Know – English Lyrics

• By: Jordan Davis

Lyrics & Translation

Embark on a journey through life's precious moments with Jordan Davis's heartfelt country ballad, "Next Thing You Know." This song is a masterclass in storytelling, offering a vivid narrative of love, family, and the beautiful, rapid passage of time. By listening closely to its clear, relatable lyrics and observing how the phrase "next thing you know" propels the story forward, you can gain insight into common English expressions for life events and the emotional depth of everyday language. Its unique structure, which foregoes a traditional chorus for continuous storytelling, makes it special and an excellent way to grasp narrative flow and emotional vocabulary in English.

[English]

(tranquil rhythmic music)

♪ You swear that you're stayin' single ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

♪ You meet a girl at a bar ♪

♪ And next thing you know ♪

♪ You get her laughin' it's 2 AM ♪

♪ You're telling your buddies three months in ♪

♪ That she ain't movin' in ♪

♪ But next thing you know ♪

♪ There's a U-Haul trailer ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

♪ Your old apartment ♪

♪ Is y'all's new place ♪

♪ There goes the carpet ♪

♪ But the deer head stays ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

♪ You're savin' money like never before, just to ♪

♪ Spend it all at a jewelry store, gettin' ♪

♪ Down on one knee on her mama's porch ♪

♪ Just prayin' she don't say no ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

♪ Your best man gives a half drunk speech and you're ♪

♪ Sunburnt on a honeymoon beach and you're ♪

♪ Left hand's gettin' used to that ring ♪

♪ And there the next two or three years go ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

(tranquil rhythmic music)

♪ Y'all weren't really tryin' ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

♪ There's a test on the counter ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

♪ She's standin' there cryin' ♪

♪ Noddin' her head, yes ♪

♪ You're half excited ♪

♪ Half scared to death ♪

♪ 'Cause next thing you know ♪

♪ You're wearing scrubs and a funny white hat and the ♪

♪ Doctor's sayin', how you doin' there dad and ♪

♪ Nobody's ever called you that ♪

♪ And you take that drive home slow ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

♪ It's first steps, first dates, first car, it's ♪

♪ 11:01 wonderin' where they are ♪

♪ You're sayin' that USC's too far ♪

♪ It's amazing how fast seventeen years go ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪ (inspirational rhythmic music)

♪ The next thing you know ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

♪ You get to know your wife again and you're ♪

♪ More in love than you've ever been with a ♪

♪ Lot of years of remember when's ♪

♪ And still some down the road ♪

♪ 'Cause next thing you know ♪

♪ You got a yard full of your kid's kids and ya ♪

♪ Take 'em to church, teach 'em to fish, and ya ♪

♪ Tell 'em stories every chance you get ♪

♪ About how fast this life down here can go ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

♪ Next thing you know ♪

(inspirational rhythmic music)

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
meet /miːt/ A1	verb - to encounter someone
laughing /ˈlæfɪŋ/ A2	verb - making sounds and facial expressions of amusement.
trailer /ˈtreɪlər/ A2	noun - a vehicle towed by another
apartment /əˈpɑːrtmənt/ A2	noun - a set of rooms for living in
carpet /ˈkɑːrpɪt/ A2	noun - a floor covering made of thick woven material
money /ˈmʌni/ A1	noun - a current medium of exchange
jewelry /ˈdʒuːəlri/ B1	noun - ornamental objects worn for adornment
knee /niː/ A2	noun - the joint between the thigh and the lower leg
porch /pɔːrtʃ/ B1	noun - a covered shelter in front of the entrance of a building
man /mæn/ A1	noun - an adult male human being
speech /spiːtʃ/ B1	noun - the expression of or the ability to express thoughts and feelings by articulate sounds
beach /biːtʃ/ A1	noun - a pebbly or sandy shore, especially by the sea between high- and low-water marks
ring /rɪŋ/ A1	noun - a small circular band, typically of precious metal and often set with a gem, worn on a finger
test /test/ A2	noun - a procedure intended to establish the quality, performance, or reliability of something, especially before it is taken into widespread use
doctor /ˈdɑːktər/ A1	noun - a person who is skilled in and licensed to practice medicine
scrubs /skrʌbz/ B2	noun - protective clothing worn by surgeons and other medical personnel

Key Grammar Structures

• You swear that you're stayin' single

  ➔ Present Continuous for future arrangement with "staying"

  ➔ The use of "staying" in the present continuous implies a firm intention or arrangement to remain single. It's often used sarcastically here, hinting that this intention won't last.

• You get her laughin' it's 2 AM

  ➔ Causative "get" + object + bare infinitive

  ➔ "Get her laughin'" means you cause her to laugh. This uses "get" in a causative way, meaning to make someone do something. The bare infinitive (laughin') is used in American English when following "get" in this form.

• Your old apartment is y'all's new place

  ➔ Possessive Pronoun "y'all's"

  ➔ "Y'all's" is a contraction of "you all's," used in Southern American English as a possessive pronoun equivalent to "your" but referring to a group of people.

• You're savin' money like never before, just to

  ➔ Comparative adverbial phrase "like never before"

  ➔ "Like never before" is an idiomatic phrase meaning that something is happening to a greater degree or intensity than it ever has in the past.

• Just prayin' she don't say no

  ➔ Subjunctive Mood (informal omission of "that" and "should")

  ➔ The line implies "just praying that she doesn't say no" or "just praying she should not say no". In informal speech, "that" and "should" are often omitted after verbs expressing a wish or desire, like "pray".

• Y'all weren't really tryin'

  ➔ Past Continuous Negative with "y'all"

  ➔ This uses the past continuous negative form ("weren't trying") to describe an ongoing action in the past that wasn't happening. "Y'all" is a plural second-person pronoun used in Southern American English.

• Nobody's ever called you that

  ➔ Present Perfect with "ever" and possessive pronoun

  ➔ The present perfect tense ("Nobody's ever called") is used to describe an event that happened at an unspecified time in the past and is relevant to the present. "Ever" emphasizes that this has not happened at any point in the speaker's life until now.