Steel – English Lyrics

• By: Galantis

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

Am I lost in this town?

Where the signs point up take you down

I'll hold on until the fray

Everything strong built black and grey

How many drop and fall away?

They either crack or separate

Love is a shell, a heartbreak

But your arms made of steel

But your arms made of steel

Open arms made of steel

Open arms made of steel

...

But your arms

...

Dreams and thoughts shift around

As they change, they might let you down

I'll hold on until the fray

Everything strong built black and grey

How many drop and fall away?

They either crack or separate

Love is a shell, a heartbreak

But your arms made of steel

But your arms made of steel

Open arms made of steel

Open arms made of steel

...

But your arms.

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
lost /lɔːst/ A1	adjective - unable to find your way or be found
signs /saɪnz/ A1	noun - a notice or indication
hold /hoʊld/ A1	verb - to grasp or carry something
fray /freɪ/ B2	noun - a fight or conflict
strong /strɒŋ/ A1	adjective - having great physical power
built /bɪlt/ A2	verb - past tense of build; to construct
grey /ɡreɪ/ A1	adjective - of a color between black and white
drop /drɒp/ A1	verb - to fall or let something fall
crack /kræk/ A2	verb - to break or cause to break without complete separation
separate /ˈsɛpəreɪt/ B1	verb - to divide or be divided
love /lʌv/ A1	noun - a deep affection
shell /ʃɛl/ A2	noun - a hard outer covering
heartbreak /ˈhɑːrtbreɪk/ B1	noun - intense emotional suffering
steel /stiːl/ A2	noun - a strong metal alloy
arms /ɑːrmz/ A1	noun - the part of the body from the shoulder to the hand
dreams /driːmz/ A1	noun - a series of thoughts or images experienced during sleep
shift /ʃɪft/ B1	verb - to move or change position
change /tʃeɪndʒ/ A1	verb - to make or become different

Key Grammar Structures

• Am I lost in this town?

  ➔ Subject‑verb inversion in a yes‑no question

  ➔ The auxiliary "Am" comes before the subject "I" to form a yes‑no question (subject‑verb inversion).

• I'll hold on until the fray

  ➔ Simple future with "will" (contraction)

  ➔ "I'll" is the contraction of "I will"; the modal "will" marks a future intention.

• Everything strong built black and grey

  ➔ Past participle used as adjective (reduced relative clause)

  ➔ "built" is a past participle functioning like an adjective, describing "everything".

• How many drop and fall away?

  ➔ Present simple with plural subject (question)

  ➔ "drop" (and "fall") are in the present simple, matching the plural implied subject "many".

• They either crack or separate

  ➔ "Either…or" coordination

  ➔ "either" introduces the first alternative and "or" introduces the second; the verbs share the same subject.

• Love is a shell, a heartbreak

  ➔ Copular verb "is" linking nouns

  ➔ "is" is the present‑simple form of the copula "to be", used to equate "Love" with the noun phrases "a shell" and "a heartbreak".

• But your arms made of steel

  ➔ Elliptical copula (zero copula) – past participle used adjectivally

  ➔ "made" is a past participle describing "arms"; the verb "are" is omitted (zero copula).

• Dreams and thoughts shift around

  ➔ Present simple with adverbial particle "around"

  ➔ "shift" is in the present simple; the particle "around" adds the sense of movement in various directions.

• As they change, they might let you down

  ➔ Modal "might" for possibility + adverbial clause introduced by "as"

  ➔ "might" expresses a possible future action; "as" introduces a time‑related clause "they change".