人來人往 – Bilingual Lyrics Chinese/English

• By: 陳奕迅

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the beauty and emotional depth of Cantonese through Eason Chan's classic ballad, '人來人往'. This song offers a powerful lesson in expressing complex feelings of love, loss, and longing. Its poetic lyrics, full of metaphors about the transient nature of life and relationships, make it a special and rewarding piece for any language learner to explore.

[English]

Friends have gone, and you've just been promoted

Drinking until dawn, never enough

Doing everything to hold my hand

Clinging behind my neck and back

Saying your boyfriend’s busy, just an excuse

Until finally, you get drunk

Couples part ways, and you just went through a breakup

Crying all your tears and coming clean

Loneliness then takes my hand

Taking off his promise ring

I have what you don’t

But for now, at least

We’ve become close friends

Closing your eyes, who do you miss most

Opening your eyes, who’s by your side

Grateful that there’s still a platform at the station

That can move us to tears

Whether or not we have, we will remember who

Happiness or not, it stays inside

If love could last forever without losing it

Why do you want to find a partner today

...

Everyone will leave, and you just fell in love

Deep down, we knew we were never enough

Using that as an excuse to let go of my hand

Hidden behind the stickers and photos

My heartfelt efforts, have they been in vain?

But I’ve tried escaping on trips

How can I say I’m okay?

Closing my eyes, who do I miss most

Opening my eyes, who’s there beside me

Grateful that there’s still a platform at the station

That once made us feel complete enough to cry

Whether or not we possess, we’ll remember who

Happiness will eventually pass

If love is to never be lost again

Who’s played games with whom

If love is too hard to hold

Why not put these hands inside your heart

...

Time moves on, and I just lost love

Starting to hold hands with someone else

But what can truly be possessed

Clinging behind the neck and back

The most beautiful long hair, not left in my hand

I’ve also enjoyed a drink happily

...

[Chinese]

朋友已走 剛升職的你

舉杯到凌晨還未夠

用盡心機拉我手

纏在我頸背後

說你男友有事忙是藉口

說到終於飲醉酒

情侶會走 剛失戀的你

哭乾眼淚前來自首

寂寞因此牽我手

除下了他手信後

我已得到你沒有

但你我至少往後

成為了蜜友

閉起雙眼你最掛念誰

眼睛張開身邊竟是誰

感激車站裡尚有月台

能讓我們滿足到落淚

擁不擁有也會記住誰

快不快樂留在身體裡

愛若能夠永不失去

何以你今天竟想找尋伴侶

誰也會走 剛相戀的你

先知我們原來未夠

藉故鬆開我的手

藏在貼紙相背後

我這苦心開過沒有

但試過散心旅遊

如何答沒有

閉起雙眼我最掛念誰

眼睛張開身邊竟是誰

感激車站裡尚有月台

曾讓我們滿足到落淚

擁不擁有也會記住誰

快不快樂有天總過去

愛若為了永不失去

誰勉強娛樂過誰

愛若難以放進手裡

何不將這雙手放進心裡

時間會走 剛失戀的我

開始與旁人攜著手

但甚麼可以擁有

纏在那頸背後

最美麗長髮未留在我手

我也開心飲過酒

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
朋友 /pɻɤn A1	noun - friend
走 /zou/ A1	verb - to walk, to leave
升職 /shēngzhí/ B1	noun - promotion
舉杯 /jǔbēi/ B1	verb/noun - to raise a glass, toast
心機 /xīnjī/ B2	noun - scheme, effort
纏 /chán/ C1	verb - to entangle, to cling
頸背 /jǐngbèi/ C2	noun - neck and back
情侶 /qínglǚ/ A2	noun - couple, lovers
醉酒 /zuìjiǔ/ B2	noun - drunk, intoxicated
眼淚 /yǎnlèi/ A1	noun - tears
自首 /zìshǒu/ B2	verb - to surrender, to confess
寂寞 /jìmò/ A2	noun - loneliness
牽 /qiān/ C2	verb - to lead, to drag
失戀 /shīliàn/ B2	noun - heartbreak, love lost
滿足 /mǎnzú/ B1	noun - satisfaction
快樂 /kuàilè/ A2	noun - happiness
愛 /ài/ A1	noun - love

Key Grammar Structures

• 用盡心機拉我手

  ➔ Use up all one's effort / energy

  ➔ The phrase "用盡" indicates *completeness* in using effort or resources.

• 說到終於飲醉酒

  ➔ Sequence of actions / finally happened

  ➔ The phrase "說到...終於" indicates *the culmination or realization of a sequence of events*.

• 我已得到你沒有

  ➔ Negation with "沒有" meaning "do not have" / "lack"

  ➔ "沒有" is used to negate possession or existence of something.

• 快不快樂留在身體裡

  ➔ Expression of a state remaining within oneself

  ➔ The phrase "留在身體裡" indicates a *state or emotion that remains within oneself*.

• 愛若能夠永不失去

  ➔ Conditional phrase "若能夠" meaning "if able to" / "if possible"

  ➔ "若能夠" introduces a *conditional* statement about possibility or ability.

• 時間會走 剛失戀的我

  ➔ Expressing future possibility with "會"

  ➔ The particle "會" indicates *future possibility or inevitability*.