Speed Of Light – English Lyrics

• By: Iron Maiden
• Album: The Book Of Souls

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

Another time, another place

A hollow universe in space

...

I took a trip to see the sights

I will be blacker than the night

One way ticket, no return

My shooting star so fast it burns

On the edge that you can't see

Let's shoot the moon you and me

I'm not particular you see

Just a lonesome galaxy

Shadows in the stars

We will not return

Humanity won't save us

At the speed of light

Shadows in the stars

We will not return

Humanity won't save us

We slip into the night

...

I'll say a mass for you and wave

Shooting plasma from my grave

...

Event horizon lost in space

Running in a human race

I don't know where, I don't know when

But somehow back there time again

I'm on the edge that you can't see

I'm not particular at night

A single particle of me

You won't be tracking me by sight

Shadows in the stars

We will not return

Humanity won't save us

At the speed of light

Shadows in the stars

We will not return

Humanity won't save us

We slip into the night

...

Shadows in the stars

We will not return

Humanity won't save us

At the speed of light

Shadows in the stars

We will not return

Humanity won't save us

At the speed of light

Shadows in the stars

We will not return

Humanity won't save us

At the speed of light

Shadows in the stars

We will not return

Humanity won't save us

At the speed of light

...

We slip into the night

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
light /laɪt/ A1	noun - the natural agent that stimulates sight and makes things visible.
speed /spiːd/ A2	noun - the rate at which someone or something is able to move or operate.
shadow /ˈʃædəʊ/ A2	noun - a dark area or shape produced by a body coming between rays of light and a surface.
star /stɑːr/ A1	noun - a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in its interior.
night /naɪt/ A1	noun - the period of darkness in each twenty-four hours; the time between sunset and sunrise.
humanity /hjuːˈmænɪti/ B2	noun - the human race; human beings collectively.
return /rɪˈtɜːrn/ A2	verb - go or come back to a place or person. noun - an act of coming or going back to a place or situation.
space /speɪs/ A2	noun - the physical universe beyond the Earth's atmosphere. noun - a continuous area or expanse which is free, available, or unoccupied.
universe /ˈjuːnɪvɜːrs/ B1	noun - all existing matter and space considered as a whole; the cosmos.
horizon /həˈraɪzn/ B2	noun - the line at which the earth's surface and the sky appear to meet. noun - the limit of a person's knowledge, experience, or interest.
plasma /ˈplæzmə/ C1	noun - an ionized gas consisting of positive ions and free electrons in proportions resulting in no overall electric charge, typically at very high temperatures.
particle /ˈpɑːrtɪkl/ B2	noun - a minute portion of matter.
shoot /ʃuːt/ B1	verb - (of a gun or other weapon) discharge a projectile. verb - move suddenly and rapidly in a particular direction.
slip /slɪp/ B1	verb - go or move in a quick, easy, or secret way. verb - slide unintentionally for a short distance.
hollow /ˈhɒləʊ/ B2	adjective - having a hole or empty space inside. adjective - without value, sincerity, or substance.
edge /edʒ/ B1	noun - the outside limit of an object, area, or surface; a place or part farthest away from the center of something. noun - the point just before something unpleasant or exciting happens.
grave /ɡreɪv/ B1	noun - a place of burial for a dead body, typically a hole dug in the ground and marked by a stone or mound.
galaxy /ˈɡæləksi/ B1	noun - a system of millions or billions of stars, together with gas and dust, held together by gravitational attraction.
lonesome /ˈləʊnsəm/ B2	adjective - solitary or lonely.
black /blæk/ A1	adjective - of the very darkest colour owing to the absence of or complete absorption of light; the opposite of white.

Key Grammar Structures

• I will be blacker than the night

  ➔ Comparative adjective ("blacker than") + Future Simple ("will be").

  ➔ "blacker than" is a comparative adjective used to compare two things, indicating that one possesses a quality to a greater degree than the other. "will be" indicates a future state or condition.

• My shooting star so fast it burns

  ➔ Implicit "so... (that)" construction.

  ➔ The structure "so [adjective/adverb] (that) [result]" is used to express cause and effect. Here, "that it burns" is implied, meaning the star is so fast that it burns.

• On the edge that you can't see

  ➔ Defining relative clause ("that you can't see").

  ➔ "that you can't see" is a defining relative clause modifying "the edge," providing essential information about it. "that" refers to "the edge" and acts as a relative pronoun.

• Let's shoot the moon you and me

  ➔ Imperative for suggestion ("Let's") + Object pronouns ("you and me").

  ➔ "Let's" is a contraction of "let us" and is used to make a suggestion or proposal. "you and me" are object pronouns, here used informally to refer to the people included in the suggestion.

• Humanity won't save us

  ➔ Future Simple negative ("won't save") + Object pronoun ("us").

  ➔ "won't save" is the contracted negative form of the Future Simple tense, indicating an action that will not happen in the future. "us" is an object pronoun, receiving the action of the verb.

• Shooting plasma from my grave

  ➔ Present participle ("Shooting") acting as an adjective/modifier.

  ➔ "Shooting" is a present participle used here to describe an ongoing action or characteristic of the plasma, implying something like "plasma that is shooting" or "I am shooting plasma."

• Event horizon lost in space

  ➔ Past participle ("lost") acting as an adjective/modifier (reduced relative clause).

  ➔ "lost" is a past participle used as an adjective to describe "Event horizon," implying "Event horizon that *is* lost in space." This is a common form of a reduced relative clause.

• I don't know where, I don't know when

  ➔ Noun clauses (indirect questions) using interrogative adverbs ("where," "when").

  ➔ "where" and "when" introduce noun clauses that function as the direct objects of the verb "know." They are indirect questions, integrated into the main sentence structure.

• You won't be tracking me by sight

  ➔ Future Continuous negative ("won't be tracking") + Prepositional phrase of manner ("by sight").

  ➔ "won't be tracking" is the negative form of the Future Continuous tense, indicating an action that will not be in progress at a specific time in the future. "by sight" is a prepositional phrase indicating the method or means.