Say Goodbye – English Lyrics

• By: Chris Brown

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the emotive R&B sounds of Chris Brown's "Say Goodbye" to explore the nuances of English expressions related to heartbreak and moving on. This song offers rich vocabulary and phrases, especially around difficult conversations and personal growth, making it a powerful tool for language learners to grasp authentic emotional language and cultural context within popular music.

[English]

Look

We gotta talk

Dang, I know, I know

But it's, it's just

Some things I gotta get off chest, aight?

Yeah, woah, woah-woah-woah, woah

Listen

Baby, come here and sit down

Let's talk, I got alot to say

So I guess I'll start by sayin' that I love you

But you know this thing ain't been a walk in the park (for us)

I swear it'll only take a minute

You'll understand when I finish, yeah

And I don't want to see you cry

But I don't want to be the one to tell you a lie, so

How do you let it go, when you

You just don't know what's on

The other side of the door

When you're walking out? Talk about it

And everything I tried to remember to say

Just went out my head

So I'm a do the best I can to get you to understand

'Cause I know

There's never a right time to say goodbye (Yeah)

But I gotta make the first move

'Cause if I don't, you gonna start hating me

'Cause I really don't feel the way I once felt about you

Girl, it's not you, it's me

I, kinda, gotta figure out what I need, oh

There's never a right time to say goodbye

But we know that we gotta go

Our separate ways

And I know it's hard, but I gotta do it

And it's killing me

'Cause there's never a right time

Right time to say goodbye

Girl, I know your heart is breaking

And a thousand times I

Found myself asking, why? Why?

Why am I taking so long to say this?

But trust me, girl, I never

Meant to crush your world, and I never

Thought I would see the day we'd grow apart

And I wanna know

How do you let it go, when you

You just don't know what's on

The other side of the door

When you're walking out? Talk about

Girl, I hope you understand

What I'm tryna say

We just can't go on

Pretending that we get along

Girl, how you not gonna see it? (Oh, oh, yeah)

There's never a right time to say goodbye

But I gotta make the first move

'Cause if I don't, you gonna start hating me

'Cause I really don't feel the way I once felt about you

Girl, it's not you, it's me

I, kinda, gotta figure out what I need, oh

There's never a right time to say goodbye

But we know that we gotta go

Our separate ways

And I know it's hard, but I gotta do it

And it's killing me

'Cause there's never a right time

Right time to say goodbye

Listen to your heart

Girl, you know

We should be apart, baby

I, I just can't do it

I, I just can't do it

Listen to your heart

Girl, you know

We should be apart, baby

I, I just can't do it

And sometimes it makes me wanna cry

Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh

Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh

Do you hear me crying?

Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh

Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh

There's never a right

There's never a right time to say goodbye (Oh yeah)

But I gotta make the first move

'Cause if I don't, you gonna start hating me (You gonna start hating me, baby)

'Cause I really don't feel the way I once felt about you (No more)

Girl, it's not you, it's me (It's me, yeah)

I, kinda gotta figure out what I need, oh (About you and me)

There's never a right time to say goodbye (Oh, no it ain't)

But we know that we gotta go

Our separate ways (Yeah, yeah, yeah)

And I know it's hard, but we gotta do it

And it's killing me

'Cause there's never a right time

Right time to say goodbye (Right time)

There's never a right time to say goodbye

...

But I gotta make the first move

'Cause if I don't, you gonna start hating me

'Cause I really don't feel the way I once felt about you

Girl, it's not you, it's me

I, kinda, gotta figure out what I need, oh

There's never a right time to say goodbye

But we know that we gotta go

Our separate ways

And I know it's hard, but we gotta do it

And it's killing me

'Cause there's never a right time

Right time to say

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
talk /tɔːk/ A1	verb - to say words to someone noun - conversation
love /lʌv/ A1	noun - a strong feeling of affection verb - to have a strong affection for
understand /ˌʌndərˈstænd/ B1	verb - to perceive the intended meaning of words
cry /kraɪ/ A1	verb - to shed tears
feel /fiːl/ A2	verb - to experience an emotion or sensation
heart /hɑːrt/ A1	noun - the organ that pumps blood noun - the center of emotion
breaking /ˈbreɪkɪŋ/ B1	verb - to separate into pieces adjective - causing sadness
figure /ˈfɪɡər/ B1	verb - to work something out
separate /ˈsepəreɪt/ B2	adjective - not joined or connected verb - to divide into parts
hating /ˈheɪtɪŋ/ B2	verb - to dislike intensely
pretending /prɪˈtendɪŋ/ B1	verb - to behave as if something is true when it is not
killing /ˈkɪlɪŋ/ B2	verb - causing great emotional pain
asking /ˈæskɪŋ/ A2	verb - to request information
grow /ɡroʊ/ A2	verb - to increase in size
apart /əˈpɑːrt/ B1	adverb - separated in space or time
wanna /ˈwɑːnə/ A2	verb - want to

Key Grammar Structures

• Baby, come here and sit down

  ➔ Imperative Mood

  ➔ Used to give a direct command or instruction.

• I got a lot to say

  ➔ Existential 'there' (implied)

  ➔ While 'There is' isn't explicitly stated, the sentence implies the existence of many things the speaker needs to communicate.

• But you know this thing ain't been a walk in the park (for us)

  ➔ Informal Contraction ('ain't')

  ➔ A common informal substitute for 'has not' or 'is not', adding a conversational tone.

• You'll understand when I finish, yeah

  ➔ Future Simple with 'will'

  ➔ Expresses a future action or state that is expected to happen.

• And I don't want to be the one to tell you a lie, so

  ➔ Infinitive of Purpose ('to tell')

  ➔ The infinitive 'to tell' explains the reason for not wanting to be 'the one'.

• How do you let it go, when you you just don't know what's on The other side of the door

  ➔ Indirect Question

  ➔ The question is embedded within a statement, focusing on the manner of letting go.

• There's never a right time to say goodbye (Yeah)

  ➔ Existential 'there' with 'never'

  ➔ Emphasizes the absence of a suitable moment for a farewell.

• But I gotta make the first move

  ➔ Modal Verb ('gotta' - informal for 'have got to')

  ➔ Expresses obligation or necessity in an informal way.

• Girl, it's not you, it's me

  ➔ Subject-Verb Inversion (for emphasis)

  ➔ This structure is used to place emphasis on 'you' and 'me'.

• I, kinda, gotta figure out what I need, oh

  ➔ Semi-modal verb 'gotta' and informal adverb 'kinda'

  ➔ These colloquialisms create a tone of casualness and uncertainty in expressing the need for self-discovery.