Stay – English Lyrics

• By: Rihanna, Mikky Ekko
• Album: Unapologetic

Lyrics & Translation

“Stay” by Rihanna featuring Mikky Ekko is a profoundly emotional ballad that offers a unique opportunity to explore the nuances of English through its heartfelt lyrics. Its raw vulnerability and relatable themes of love, struggle, and perseverance make it an excellent song for language learners to grasp authentic emotional expression and idiomatic phrases, while its simple piano-driven melody allows for clear focus on the vocal delivery and lyrical meaning.

[English]

♪ All along it was a fever ♪

♪ A cold sweat, hot headed believer ♪

♪ I threw my hands in the air, said, show me something ♪

♪ He said, if you dare, come a little closer ♪

♪ Round and around and around and around we go ♪

♪ Oh, now tell me now, tell me now, tell me now you know ♪

♪ Not really sure how to feel about it ♪

♪ Something in the way you move ♪

♪ Makes me feel like I can't live without you ♪

♪ It takes me all the way ♪

♪ I want you to stay ♪

♪ It's not much of a life you're living ♪

♪ It's not just something you take, it's given ♪

♪ Round and around and around and around we go ♪

♪ Oh, now tell me now, tell me now, tell me now you know ♪

♪ Not really sure how to feel about it ♪

♪ Something in the way you move ♪

♪ Makes me feel like I can't live without you ♪

♪ It takes me all the way ♪

♪ And I want you to stay ♪

♪ Ooh ♪

♪ The reason I hold on ♪

♪ Ooh ♪

♪ 'Cause I need this hole gone ♪

♪ Well, funny you're the broken one ♪

♪ But I'm the only one who needed saving ♪

♪ 'Cause when you never see the light ♪

♪ It's hard to know which one of us is caving ♪

♪ Not really sure how to feel about it ♪

♪ Something in the way you move ♪

♪ Makes me feel like I can't live without you ♪

♪ It takes me all the way ♪

♪ I want you to stay ♪

♪ Stay ♪

♪ I want you to stay ♪

♪ Ooh ♪

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
fever /ˈfiːvər/ B1	noun - A high body temperature.
sweat /swet/ A2	noun - perspiration; moisture excreted through the pores of the skin verb - to excrete perspiration
headed /ˈhedɪd/ B1	adjective - Having (a specified kind of) head
believer /bɪˈliːvər/ B1	noun - A person who believes in something.
dare /der/ B1	verb - to have the courage to do something
closer /ˈkloʊsər/ A2	adjective - near in space or time
feel /fiːl/ A1	verb - to experience an emotion or sensation verb - to believe or have an opinion
move /muːv/ A1	verb - to go in a specified direction or manner; change position. noun - an act of changing physical location or position or of moving something.
life /laɪf/ A1	noun - the condition that distinguishes organisms from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death.
living /ˈlɪvɪŋ/ A2	noun - the pursuit of a way of life. adjective - alive.
given /ˈɡɪvn/ A2	verb - Present (something voluntarily). adjective - Specified or stated.
reason /ˈriːzən/ B1	noun - a cause, explanation, or justification for an action or event.
hold /hoʊld/ A2	verb - to grasp, carry, or support with one's hands.
hole /hoʊl/ A2	noun - an opening through something.
broken /ˈbroʊkən/ A2	adjective - having been fractured or damaged and no longer in one piece or in working order.
saving /ˈseɪvɪŋ/ B1	noun - the act of preserving something from loss or danger. verb - to keep safe or rescue (someone or something) from harm or risk.
light /laɪt/ A1	noun - The natural agent that stimulates sight and makes things visible.
hard /hɑːrd/ A2	adjective - Solid, firm, and rigid; difficult to break, bend, or pierce.
caving /ˈkeɪvɪŋ/ B2	verb - to give way; collapse or subside.

Key Grammar Structures

• All along it was a fever

  ➔ Past Simple Tense

  ➔ Uses the past simple tense to describe a state that existed in the past. "Was" is the past tense of "be."

• If you dare, come a little closer

  ➔ Conditional Clause (Implied), Imperative

  ➔ This sentence contains an implied conditional. It suggests, "*If* you dare, *then* come a little closer." "Come" is the imperative, used to give a command or request.

• Not really sure how to feel about it

  ➔ Infinitive Phrase, Prepositional Phrase

  ➔ "How to feel" is an infinitive phrase functioning as the object of "sure." "About it" is a prepositional phrase modifying "feel."

• Makes me feel like I can't live without you

  ➔ Causative Verb, Subordinate Clause

  ➔ "Makes" is a causative verb, meaning it causes someone (me) to feel a certain way. "I can't live without you" is a subordinate clause, dependent on the main clause. The word 'that' is omitted, but it is implied (makes me feel *that*).

• It's not just something you take, it's given

  ➔ Passive Voice, Present Simple Tense

  ➔ "It's given" is in the passive voice. The subject (it) receives the action rather than performing it. The present simple tense implies a general truth or fact.

• Funny you're the broken one

  ➔ Subject Complement, Ellipsis

  ➔ "The broken one" is a subject complement, describing the subject "you." There is an ellipsis of the word "that", meaning "It's funny *that* you are the broken one".

• But I'm the only one who needed saving

  ➔ Relative Clause

  ➔ "Who needed saving" is a relative clause that modifies "the only one". The relative pronoun "who" introduces the clause and refers back to "the only one."

• It's hard to know which one of us is caving

  ➔ Dummy 'It', Infinitive Phrase, Question Word as a Conjunction

  ➔ "It" is a dummy subject, standing in for the actual subject, which is the infinitive phrase "to know which one of us is caving." "Which" functions as a conjunction connecting "know" and the clause "one of us is caving."