Sans toi – Bilingual Lyrics French/English

• By: Pomme
• Album: À peu près

Lyrics & Translation

Learning a language through music is a journey of cultural immersion, and Pomme's "Sans toi" offers a beautiful entry point into the nuances of French expression. Through its poetic and emotive lyrics, you can learn to articulate feelings of longing and resilience. This song is special because it combines the classic storytelling of French chanson with a modern, intimate folk sensibility, making the language feel both timeless and deeply personal.

[English]

I got off the train

Paris early in the morning

Without you

...

And this morning I didn't know

God, my life was just beginning

Without you

...

I’ve turned into a witch, I’ve gone crazy

A viper, I’ve bitten the apple

Without you

Without you

I have to get used to it, I carry on my shoulders

A bulldozer and the villain’s role

Without you

Without you

And when night falls, to never cry again

I chase away a couple of pairs of arms

Just to find refuge there for a moment, for a kiss

So I’ll never see myself again

Without you

Without you

Without you

...

The tomorrows are the same

My heart is in quarantine

Without you

...

Paris no longer means anything

If I have to conquer it

Without you

...

Since then I compose war songs

And through my words I kill you in prose

Without you

Without you

I don’t care about beer, I don’t care about cirrhosis

One last drink, one last dose

Without you

Without you

And when night falls, to never cry again

I chase away a couple of pairs of arms

Just to find refuge there for a moment, for a kiss

So I’ll never see myself again

Without you

Without you

Without you

Without you

...

Without you

...

[French]

Je suis descendue du train

Paris au petit matin

Sans toi

Et ce matin j'ignorais

Dieu que ma vie commençait

Sans toi

Une sorcière, je suis devenue folle

Une vipère, j'ai croqué la pomme

Sans toi

Sans toi

Je dois m'y faire, j'ai sur les épaules

Un bulldozer et le mauvais rôle

Sans toi

Sans toi

Et la nuit tombée, pour ne plus jamais pleurer

Je chasse deux, trois paires de bras

Pour m'y réfugier seulement le temps d'un baiser

Pour ne plus jamais me voir

Sans toi

Sans toi

Sans toi

Les lendemains sont les mêmes

J'ai le cœur en quarantaine

Sans toi

Paris ne veut plus rien dire

Si je dois la conquérir

Sans toi

Des chants de guerre depuis je compose

Et dans mes airs je te tue en prose

Sans toi

Sans toi

M'en fous la bière, m'en fous la cirrhose

Un dernier verre, une dernière dose

Sans toi

Sans toi

Et la nuit tombée, pour ne plus jamais pleurer

Je chasse deux trois paires de bras

Pour m'y réfugier seulement le temps d'un baiser

Pour ne plus jamais me voir

Sans toi

Sans toi

Sans toi

Sans toi

Sans toi

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
train /tʁɛ̃/ A2	noun - a mode of transportation that runs on rails
matin /mɛ.tɛ̃/ A2	noun - morning
vie /vjɛ/ B1	noun - life
pomme /pɔm/ A2	noun - apple
dois /dwa/ A2	verb - to have to, must
moi /mwa/ A2	pronoun - myself
fou /fu/ B1	adjective - crazy
role /ʁɔl/ B1	noun - role, part
nuit /nɥi/ A2	noun - night
pleurer /plœʁe/ B2	verb - to cry
refugier /ʁefydiʒe/ C1
temps /tɑ̃/ A2	noun - time, weather
peur /pœʁ/ A2	noun - fear
jour /ʒuʁ/ A2	noun - day

Key Grammar Structures

• Je suis descendue du train

  ➔ Passé composé with 'être' + past participle to form the past tense

  ➔ The speaker forms the past tense describing an action completed in the past, using 'suis' (am) + past participle 'descendue'.

• J'ignorais

  ➔ Imperfect tense of 'ignorer', indicating ongoing or repeated past actions

  ➔ The singer describes an ongoing or habitual action in the past, using the imperfect tense 'ignorais'.

• Sans toi

  ➔ Preposition 'sans' followed by a noun, indicating absence or lack

  ➔ The phrase 'Sans toi' indicates the absence of 'you', emphasizing loneliness or loss.

• Une sorcière, je suis devenue folle

  ➔ Using 'devenir' in the past tense to indicate a change of state

  ➔ The speaker expresses a transformation, using 'je suis devenue' (I have become) + adjective 'folle' (crazy).

• Et la nuit tombée

  ➔ Participle: 'tombée', past participle used as an adjective-after noun phrase

  ➔ The phrase uses the past participle 'tombée' (fallen) to describe 'la nuit' (the night), functioning as an adjective.

• Pour ne plus jamais pleurer

  ➔ Infinitive construction with 'pour' indicating purpose or goal

  ➔ The phrase expresses the purpose of avoiding crying forever, using the infinitive 'pleurer' (to cry) with 'pour'.