Stones – English Lyrics

• By: Bruce Springsteen

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the evocative world of Bruce Springsteen's "Stones," a poignant track that offers a masterclass in emotional storytelling through its lyrics. This song's profound exploration of guilt and the corrosive impact of untruths on relationships makes it an excellent piece for understanding nuanced English vocabulary and expressions of regret. Its powerful imagery and deeply felt narrative will not only resonate emotionally but also enrich your grasp of the language through its poetic and raw honesty.

[English]

I woke up this morning

with stones in my mouth

You said those were only the lies you've told me

Those are only the lies you've told me

I pulled my collar to the wind

and spit them on the ground

You said those are only the lies you've told me

Those are only the lies you've told me

Sat on the edge of our bed

in the sun

I felt them gather on my tongue

I woke up this morning

with stones in my mouth

You said those are only the lies you've told me

Those are only the lies you've told me

A dirt-brown wooden field

a thousand black crows cover the ground

You say those are only the lies you've told me

Those are only the lies you've told me

The autumn wind blows through the trees

as the dark leaves come tumbling down

You say those are only the lies you've told me

Those are only the lies you've told me

I walk a highway washed in sun

I feel weight gather on my tongue

I woke up this morning

with stones in my mouth

You said those are only the lies you've told me

Those are only the lies you've told me

Those are only the lies you've told me

Only the lies you've told me

Those are only the lies you've told me

Only the lies you've told me

Those are only the lies you've told me

Only the lies you've told me

Those are only the lies you've told me

I woke up this morning

with stones in my mouth

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
stones /stoʊnz/ A1	noun - small pieces of rock
mouth /maʊθ/ A1	noun - the opening in the face used for eating and speaking
lies /laɪz/ A2	noun - false statements made with intent to deceive
woke /woʊk/ A1	verb - past tense of wake; to stop sleeping
told /toʊld/ A1	verb - past tense of tell; to communicate information to someone
said /sɛd/ A1	verb - past tense of say; to express in words
ground /ɡraʊnd/ A1	noun - the surface of the earth
tongue /tʌŋ/ A1	noun - the muscular organ in the mouth
wind /wɪnd/ A1	noun - moving air
sun /sʌn/ A1	noun - the star that provides light and heat to Earth
spit /spɪt/ A2	verb - to eject saliva from the mouth
pulled /pʊld/ A1	verb - past tense of pull; to exert force on something to move it
crows /kroʊz/ B1	noun - large black birds
trees /triːz/ A1	noun - tall plants with a trunk and branches
leaves /liːvz/ A1	noun - flat green structures growing from branches of trees
highway /ˈhaɪ.weɪ/ A2	noun - a main public road
gather /ˈɡæð.ər/ A2	verb - to bring together
black /blæk/ A1	adjective - having the darkest color
dark /dɑːrk/ A1	adjective - with little or no light
autumn /ˈɔː.təm/ A2	adjective - relating to the season between summer and winter noun - the season between summer and winter

Key Grammar Structures

• I woke up this morning

  ➔ Past Simple (Irregular Verb)

  ➔ "woke" is the past simple form of the irregular verb "wake," used to describe a completed action that happened at a specific time in the past ("this morning").

• the lies you've told me

  ➔ Present Perfect (as a modifier)

  ➔ "You've told" (you have told) is the present perfect, indicating an action that began in the past and has a result or relevance in the present. Here, it functions like a reduced relative clause ("the lies *that* you've told me") modifying "lies."

• Sat on the edge of our bed

  ➔ Ellipsis of Subject

  ➔ The subject "I" is omitted, implying "I sat." This ellipsis is common in informal writing, poetry, and song lyrics for conciseness or stylistic effect, where the subject is understood from context.

• I felt them gather on my tongue

  ➔ Verb + Object + Bare Infinitive (Sensory Verb Construction)

  ➔ After sensory verbs like "feel," "see," "hear," we use an object ("them") followed by a bare infinitive ("gather" - verb without "to") to describe an action that is perceived directly.

• A dirt-brown wooden field

  ➔ Compound Adjectives / Adjective Order

  ➔ "Dirt-brown" is a compound adjective (two words hyphenated to form one adjective). "Wooden" is another adjective. English has a general order for adjectives (e.g., opinion, size, age, shape, color, origin, material, purpose). Here, "dirt-brown" (color) comes before "wooden" (material).

• as the dark leaves come tumbling down

  ➔ Verb + Present Participle (-ing form) / "Come + -ing" construction

  ➔ The construction "come + -ing" (e.g., "come tumbling") describes a movement or process that happens gradually or continuously. "Tumbling" is a present participle, acting as an adverbial modifier describing how the leaves come down.

• I walk a highway washed in sun

  ➔ Past Participle as Adjective / Reduced Relative Clause

  ➔ "Washed" is a past participle acting as an adjective, modifying "highway." It's a shortened form of "a highway *that is* washed in sun," which is a reduced relative clause.

• The autumn wind blows through the trees

  ➔ Phrasal Verb

  ➔ "blows through" is a phrasal verb, a combination of a verb ("blows") and a preposition ("through") that creates a new meaning, often idiomatic, describing the wind's movement among the trees.

• Those are only the lies you've told me

  ➔ Adverb of Limitation/Emphasis ("only")

  ➔ "Only" is used here as an adverb to emphasize the exclusive nature of the "lies," meaning that there are no other reasons or explanations for the speaker's feeling, just the lies.