Nowhere Generation – English Lyrics

• By: Rise Against
• Album: NOWHERE GENERATION

Lyrics & Translation

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
generation /ˌdʒɛnəˈreɪʃən/ A2	noun - All of the people born and living at about the same time; a group of people of a similar age.
nowhere /ˈnoʊˌwɛər/ A2	adverb - Not in or at any place; to no place. noun - No place; an unknown or remote place.
threat /θrɛt/ B1	noun - A statement of an intention to inflict injury, damage, or other hostile action on someone. A person or thing likely to cause damage or danger.
credible /ˈkrɛdəbəl/ B2	adjective - Able to be believed; convincing.
rules /ruːlz/ A2	noun - One of a set of explicit or understood regulations or principles governing conduct or procedure within a particular area of activity.
alarmed /əˈlɑːrmd/ B1	adjective - Feeling anxious or frightened.
language /ˈlæŋɡwɪdʒ/ A1	noun - The method of human communication, either spoken or written, consisting of the use of words in a structured and conventional way.
walls /wɔːlz/ A1	noun - A continuous upright brick or stone structure that encloses or divides an area of land. (Figurative: barriers or obstacles).
doors /dɔːrz/ A1	noun - A movable barrier at the entrance to a building, room, or vehicle, or in the framework of a cupboard. (Figurative: opportunities or access).
roads /roʊdz/ A1	noun - A wide way leading from one place to another, especially one with a specially prepared surface which vehicles can use. (Figurative: paths, courses of action, or progress).
spiraling /ˈspaɪrəlɪŋ/ C1	verb - Moving in a continuous curve that winds around a central point or axis and gets further or closer to it; (often used figuratively) deteriorating or increasing in a continuous and accelerating way.
cracks /kræks/ B1	noun - A line on the surface of something along which it has broken without coming apart. (Figurative: flaws, weaknesses, or divisions).
map /mæp/ A2	noun - A diagrammatic representation of an area of land or sea showing physical features, cities, roads, etc. (Figurative: a plan or guide for a situation).
land /lænd/ A1	noun - The part of the earth's surface that is not covered by water, as opposed to the sea or the air. (Figurative: a country or territory; a promised ideal or future).
promised /ˈprɒmɪst/ B1	adjective - Given as a promise; committed by a promise. (Often used with 'land' to refer to an ideal or hoped-for place/future).
burning /ˈbɜːrnɪŋ/ A2	adjective - On fire; producing a lot of heat or light. (Figurative: intense, passionate, or causing destruction/distress).
promises /ˈprɒmɪsɪz/ A2	noun - A declaration or assurance that one will do a particular thing or that a particular thing will happen.
ignored /ɪɡˈnɔːrd/ B1	adjective - Having been disregarded or deliberately not noticed.
climb /klaɪm/ A2	verb - To go or come up (a slope, incline, or stair); ascend.
hammers /ˈhæmərz/ A2	noun - A tool with a heavy metal head mounted at right angles to a handle, used for driving nails, breaking rocks, etc. (Figurative: hard work, struggle, or repeated forceful actions).

Key Grammar Structures

• WE ARE THE KIDS THAT NO ONE WANTS

  ➔ Relative Clause (defining)

  ➔ “That no one wants” is a relative clause that modifies “the kids”, providing essential information about them. The pronoun “that” refers to “the kids” and acts as the object of the verb “wants”.

• A CAUSE TO BE ALARMED

  ➔ Infinitive of Purpose/Result (Passive Form)

  ➔ The infinitive “to be alarmed” expresses the purpose or result of “a cause”. It's in the passive form because “a cause” is what makes someone else feel alarm, not an active alarm itself.

• WE ARE NOT THE NAMES THAT WE'VE BEEN GIVEN

  ➔ Present Perfect Passive

  ➔ “We've been given” (short for “we have been given”) is in the present perfect passive voice. It indicates an action that happened in the past (someone gave them names) but has a direct result or relevance to the present (they still carry those names, but they are not them).

• BUT RIGHT NOW WE ARE SPIRALING DOWN

  ➔ Present Continuous for ongoing action/trend

  ➔ “We are spiraling down” uses the present continuous tense to describe an action that is happening at the moment of speaking and is ongoing, often implying a current trend or state.

• AND THE LONGER WE WAIT, THE FURTHER WE GO

  ➔ Double Comparative (The + Comparative, The + Comparative)

  ➔ This structure, “the + comparative adjective/adverb, the + comparative adjective/adverb,” shows that one thing depends on another. As one thing increases or decreases, the other also changes in proportion.

• NO PLACE LEFT ON YOUR MAP NOW TO CALL HOME?

  ➔ Past Participle as an Adjective/Reduced Relative Clause + Infinitive of Purpose

  ➔ “Left” is a past participle acting as an adjective, modifying “place” (similar to “no place that is left”). “To call home” is an infinitive of purpose, indicating what one would do with a home.

• FOR YOUR SWEAT, YOU'LL BE REWARDED

  ➔ Future Simple Passive

  ➔ “You'll be rewarded” (short for “you will be rewarded”) is in the future simple passive voice. It indicates an action that will be done to the subject in the future, without specifying who performs the action (the “rewarder”).

• BUT THE FINISH LINE KEPT MOVING

  ➔ 'Keep + -ing' (Continuous Action in the Past)

  ➔ The structure “kept moving” (from “keep + verb-ing”) indicates an action that continued or repeated over a period in the past. It emphasizes the persistence or ongoing nature of the action.

• THIS PLACE USED TO BE SOMEWHERE

  ➔ 'Used to' (Past Habit/State)

  ➔ “Used to be” describes a state or situation that was true in the past but is no longer true in the present. It emphasizes a change from a past reality.

• OUR VOICES ALL IGNORED

  ➔ Reduced Relative Clause (Passive) / Ellipsis

  ➔ “Ignored” is a past participle used here in a reduced relative clause (originally “our voices, which were all ignored”). It functions adjectivally to describe the state of the voices, implying that someone ignored them.