Spectrum – English Lyrics

• By: Florence + The Machine
• Album: Dance Fever

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

[♪♪♪]

♪ When we first came here ♪

♪ We were cold and we were clear ♪

♪ With no colours on our skin ♪

♪ We were light and paper thin ♪

♪ And when we first came here ♪

♪ We were cold and we were clear ♪

♪ With no colours in our skin ♪

♪ Until we let the spectrum in ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ And every colour illuminates ♪

♪ We are shining ♪

♪ And we will never be afraid again ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ As every colour illuminates ♪

♪ We are shining ♪

♪ And we will never be afraid again ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ As every colour illuminates ♪

♪ We are shining ♪

♪ And we will never be afraid again ♪

♪ And when we come for you ♪

♪ We'll be dressed up all in blue ♪

♪ With the ocean in our arms ♪

♪ Kiss your eyes and kiss your palms ♪

♪ And when it's time to pray ♪

♪ We'll be dressed up all in grey ♪

♪ With metal on our tongues ♪

♪ And silver in our lungs ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ And every colour illuminates ♪

♪ We are shining ♪

♪ And we will never be afraid again ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ As every colour illuminates ♪

♪ We are shining ♪

♪ And we will never be afraid again ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ As every colour illuminates ♪

♪ We are shining ♪

♪ And we will never be afraid again ♪

♪ And when we come back, we'll be dressed in black ♪

♪ And you'll scream our names aloud ♪

♪ And we won't eat and we won't sleep ♪

♪ We'll drag bodies from the ground ♪

♪ So say my name ♪

♪ And every colour illuminates ♪

♪ And we are shining ♪

♪ And we will never be afraid again ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ As every colour illuminates ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ As every colour illuminates ♪

♪ We are shining ♪

♪ And we will never be afraid again ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ As every colour illuminates ♪

♪ We are shining ♪

♪ And we will never be afraid again ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ Oh ♪

♪ We are shining ♪

♪ Oh ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ Oh ♪

♪ Say my name ♪

♪ And we will never be afraid again ♪

[♪♪♪]

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
name /neɪm/ A1	noun - a word or set of words by which a person, animal, place, or thing is known, addressed, or referred to. verb - give a name to.
colour /ˈkʌlə(r)/ A2	noun - the property possessed by an object of producing different sensations on the eye as a result of the way it reflects or emits light.
skin /skɪn/ A2	noun - the outer covering of a person or animal.
light /laɪt/ A2	adjective - having a considerable or sufficient amount of light. noun - the natural agent that stimulates sight and makes things visible.
afraid /əˈfreɪd/ A2	adjective - feeling fear or anxiety.
blue /bluː/ A2	adjective - of the color blue. noun - the color blue.
eyes /aɪz/ A1	noun - each of a pair of organs of sight.
palms /pɑːmz/ B1	noun - the inner surface of the hand between the wrist and the fingers.
grey /ɡreɪ/ A2	adjective - of a color between black and white. noun - a color between black and white.
tongues /tʌŋz/ B1	noun - the fleshy muscular organ in the mouth, used for tasting, licking, swallowing, and (in humans) articulating speech.
silver /ˈsɪlvər/ B1	noun - a precious shiny greyish-white metal. adjective - of the color of silver.
lungs /lʌŋz/ B1	noun - either of the two organs in the chest with which people and animals breathe.
black /blæk/ A2	adjective - of the color black. noun - the color black.
scream /skriːm/ A2	verb - give a long, loud, piercing cry or vocalization. noun - a long, loud, piercing cry.
bodies /ˈbɒdiz/ A1	noun - the physical structure of a person or animal.
ground /ɡraʊnd/ A1	noun - the surface of the earth.
illuminate /ɪˈluːmɪneɪt/ B2	verb - light up.
shining /ˈʃaɪnɪŋ/ A2	adjective - reflecting light; bright.
spectrum /ˈspektrəm/ B2	noun - a band of colours, as seen in a rainbow, produced when a beam of white light passes through a prism.

Key Grammar Structures

• When we first came here, we were cold and we were clear.

  ➔ Past Simple Tense, Coordinating Conjunction

  ➔ The sentence uses the Past Simple to describe completed actions in the past. The conjunction 'and' connects two independent clauses describing the state of being. Note the repetition of 'we were' for emphasis.

• With no colours on our skin.

  ➔ Prepositional Phrase, Absence of Noun Modifier

  ➔ This phrase uses a preposition ('on') to show the relationship between 'colours' and 'skin'. The phrase 'no colours' indicates a lack of something, functioning as an adjective modifying 'skin'.

• Say my name and every colour illuminates.

  ➔ Imperative Mood, Coordinating Conjunction, Present Simple (describing a result)

  ➔ The verb 'Say' is in the imperative mood, giving a command. 'illuminates' is in the present simple, but describes a result that happens *when* the command is followed. 'and' connects the command and its consequence.

• We are shining and we will never be afraid again.

  ➔ Present Continuous, Future Simple with 'will'

  ➔ 'We are shining' describes a current state or ongoing action. 'We will never be afraid again' expresses a future intention or prediction. The 'never' emphasizes the permanence of this future state.

• And when we come for you, we'll be dressed up all in blue.

  ➔ Subordinate Clause (Conditional), Future with 'will' (contraction 'we'll')

  ➔ The phrase 'And when we come for you' is a subordinate clause introduced by 'when', setting a condition for the main clause. 'we'll' is a contraction of 'we will', indicating a future action. 'all in blue' is an adverbial phrase describing how they will be dressed.