On The Radio – English Lyrics

• By: Donna Summer, Giorgio Moroder
• Album: Unknown

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the magic of storytelling in music with Donna Summer's "On The Radio." The song's clear narrative about a lost letter and a surprise broadcast offers a fantastic way to learn English, following a story from quiet reflection to hopeful joy. Its unique shift from a slow ballad to an energetic disco classic makes it not only a great song to dance to, but also a special piece for appreciating emotional expression in lyrics.

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
radio /ˈreɪ.di.oʊ/ A1	noun - the technology of signalling and communicating using radio waves.
letter /ˈlet.ər/ A1	noun - a written or printed communication addressed to a person or organization.
told /toʊld/ A1	verb - past tense of tell; to communicate information to someone in spoken or written words.
world /wɜːrld/ A1	noun - the earth, together with all of its countries, peoples, and natural features.
felt /felt/ A1	verb - past tense of feel; to be aware of an emotion or physical sensation.
name /neɪm/ A1	noun - a word or set of words by which a person, animal, place, or thing is known, addressed, or referred to.
surprised /sərˈpraɪzd/ B1	adjective - feeling or showing surprise because something unexpected has happened.
shocked /ʃɒkt/ B1	adjective - greatly surprised or disgusted.
soul /soʊl/ B2	noun - the spiritual or immaterial part of a human being or animal, regarded as immortal.
feeling /ˈfiː.lɪŋ/ A2	noun - an emotional state or reaction.
loud /laʊd/ A2	adjective - producing much noise; easily audible.
air /eər/ A1	noun - the mixture of gases that surrounds the earth and that people breathe.
sad /sæd/ A1	adjective - feeling or showing sorrow; unhappy.
song /sɔːŋ/ A1	noun - a musical composition with words for singing.
love /lʌv/ A1	verb - have a strong feeling of affection for (someone). noun - an intense feeling of affection.
proud /praʊd/ B1	adjective - feeling deep pleasure or satisfaction as a result of one's own achievements, qualities, or possessions or those of someone with whom one is closely associated.
words /wɜːdz/ A1	noun - a single distinct meaningful element of speech or writing, used with others (or sometimes alone) to form a sentence and typically shown with a space on either side when written or printed.

Key Grammar Structures

• Someone found a letter you wrote me on the radio

  ➔ Past Simple

  ➔ The verb "found" indicates a completed action in the past.

• If, by chance, you heard it for yourself

  ➔ Conditional Sentence

  ➔ The phrase "If, by chance" introduces a condition that may or may not happen.

• I never told a soul just how I've been feeling over you

  ➔ Present Perfect

  ➔ The phrase "I've been feeling" indicates an action that started in the past and continues to the present.

• Now, now, don't it kinda strike you sad when you hear our song?

  ➔ Imperative Mood

  ➔ The phrase "don't it kinda strike you sad" is an informal way of giving a command or suggestion.

• If you think that love isn't found on the radio

  ➔ Negative Form

  ➔ The phrase "love isn't found" uses a negative form to express that love does not exist in that context.

• It sounded really loud, he said it really loud

  ➔ Adverb Placement

  ➔ The adverb "really loud" is placed after the verb "sounded" to modify it.