Shakespeare's Sister – English Lyrics

• By: The Smiths

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

Young bones groan and the rocks below say

Throw your skinny body down, son

But I'm going to meet the one I love

So please don't stand in my way

Because I'm going to meet the one I love

No, mama, let me go

...

Young bones groan and the rocks below say

Throw your white body down

But I'm going to meet the one I love

At last, at last, at last

I'm going to meet the one I love

La de da, la de da

No, mama, let me go

No, no, no, no

No, no, no, no

No, no, no, no

...

I thought that if you had an acoustic guitar

Then it meant that you were a protest singer

Oh, I can smile about it now

But at the time it was terrible

No, mama, let me go

No, no, no

No, no, no

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
groan /ɡroʊn/ B1	verb - to make a low, mournful sound, often expressing pain or discomfort
throw /θroʊ/ A1	verb - to propel something with force through the air
skinny /ˈskɪni/ A2	adjective - very thin
meet /miːt/ A1	verb - to come together with someone by arrangement or chance
love /lʌv/ A1	noun - a deep affection or emotional attachment
protest /ˈproʊtɛst/ B1	noun - a statement or action showing disapproval or dissent verb - to express strong objection or disapproval
acoustic /əˈkuːstɪk/ B2	adjective - relating to sound or the sense of hearing
guitar /ɡɪˈtɑːr/ A1	noun - a musical instrument with strings played by plucking or strumming
terrible /ˈtɛrəbəl/ A2	adjective - extremely bad or serious
body /ˈbɑːdi/ A1	noun - the physical structure of a person or animal
white /waɪt/ A1	adjective - of the color of milk or fresh snow
smile /smaɪl/ A1	verb - to have one's mouth curve upward, typically expressing pleasure or amusement
time /taɪm/ A1	noun - the indefinite continued progress of existence and events

Key Grammar Structures

• But I'm going to meet the one I love

  ➔ Future intention with "going to" + infinitive

  ➔ The phrase "going to" expresses a future intention: "I'm "going to" meet..."

• No, mama, let me go

  ➔ Causative imperative with "let" + object + base verb

  ➔ The word "let" functions as a causative verb: "let me go" means "allow me to go".

• Young bones groan and the rocks below say

  ➔ Simple present for habitual actions

  ➔ "groan" and "say" are in the "simple present" to describe actions that happen regularly.

• Throw your skinny body down, son

  ➔ Imperative sentence (command)

  ➔ The verb "Throw" at the beginning makes this an "imperative" command: "Throw your skinny body down".

• At last, at last, at last

  ➔ Repetition for emphasis (stylistic device)

  ➔ The phrase "at last" is repeated three times to stress the speaker's relief.

• I thought that if you had an acoustic guitar then it meant that you were a protest singer

  ➔ Reported speech + second conditional (if + past simple, would + base verb)

  ➔ The speaker uses "thought" to report a past belief, and the clause "if you had... it meant..." is a "second conditional" expressing an unreal present situation.

• I can smile about it now

  ➔ Modal verb "can" + infinitive to express ability

  ➔ "can" indicates the speaker's ability: "I "can" smile...".

• But at the time it was terrible

  ➔ Past simple tense for a completed past state

  ➔ "was" is the past simple form of "be", showing a state that existed at a specific past moment.