Synchronicity II – English Lyrics

• By: The Police
• Album: Synchronicity

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

(discordant music)

("Synchronicity II" intro music)

♪ Ah ah oh ♪

♪ Ah ah oh ♪

♪ Ah ah oh ♪

♪ Ah ah oh ♪

♪ Another suburban family morning ♪

♪ Grandmother screaming at the wall ♪

♪ We have to shout above the din of our Rice Crispies ♪

♪ We can't hear anything at all ♪

♪ Mother chants her litany of boredom and frustration ♪

♪ But we know all her suicides are fake ♪

♪ Daddy only stares into the distance ♪

♪ There's only so much more that he can take ♪

♪ Many miles away something crawls from the slime ♪

♪ At the bottom of a dark Scottish lake ♪

♪ Another industrial ugly morning ♪

♪ The factory belches filth into the sky ♪

♪ He walks unhindered through the picket lines today ♪

♪ He doesn't think to wonder why ♪

♪ The secretaries pout and preen ♪

♪ Like cheap tarts in a red light street ♪

♪ But all he ever thinks to do is watch ♪

♪ And every single meeting with his so called superior ♪

♪ Is a humiliating kick in the crotch ♪

♪ Many miles away something crawls to the surface ♪

♪ Of a dark Scottish loch ♪

(Sting screams)

(instrumental music)

♪ Another working day has ended ♪

♪ Only the rush hour hell to face ♪

♪ Packed like lemmings into shiny metal boxes ♪

♪ Contestants in a suicidal race ♪

♪ Daddy grips the wheel and stares alone into the distance ♪

♪ He knows that something somewhere has to break ♪

♪ He sees the family home now looming in his headlights ♪

♪ The pain upstairs that makes his eyeballs ache ♪

♪ Many miles away there's a shadow on the door ♪

♪ Of a cottage on the shore ♪

♪ Of a dark Scottish lake ♪

♪ Many miles away ♪

♪ Many miles away ♪

♪ Many miles away ♪

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
suburban /səˈbɜːrbən/ B1	adjective - relating to or characteristic of the areas on the outskirts of a city
scream /skriːm/ A2	verb - to give a loud, high-pitched cry, especially because of pain, fear, or excitement
chant /tʃænt/ B1	verb - to repeat words or sounds in a singsong manner
frustration /frʌˈstreɪʃən/ B1	noun - a feeling of dissatisfaction resulting from unmet needs or unresolved problems
crawl /krɔːl/ A1	verb - to move on the hands and knees or with the body close to the ground
slime /slaɪm/ A2	noun - a thick, slippery, often wet substance
belch /bɛlʧ/ B2	verb - to eject gas noisily from the stomach through the mouth
picket /ˈpɪkɪt/ B2	noun - a person or group of people standing outside a place of work to protest about something
pout /paʊt/ B1	verb - to push out one's lips in a way that shows annoyance or anger
preen /priːn/ B2	verb - to spend time making oneself look attractive, especially in a way that others can see
humiliating /hjuːˈmɪlieɪtɪŋ/ B2	adjective - causing someone to feel ashamed or lose respect
rush /rʌʃ/ A2	noun - a sudden quick movement, especially in a specified direction
lemming /ˈlɛmɪŋ/ C1	noun - a small rodent that is often associated with mass suicidal behavior
suicidal /suːˈɪsədl/ B2	adjective - relating to or characterized by a desire to kill oneself
loom /luːm/ B2	verb - to appear in a large or frightening way, especially as something approaches

Key Grammar Structures

• Another suburban family morning

  ➔ Noun phrase with adjective order

  ➔ The adjectives **another**, **suburban**, **family** appear before the noun **morning** in a specific order.

• Grandmother screaming at the wall

  ➔ Present participle clause (reduced relative clause)

  ➔ The verb **screaming** functions as a participle describing **Grandmother**.

• We have to shout above the din of our Rice Crispies

  ➔ Modal verb + infinitive (obligation)

  ➔ The structure **have to** + **shout** expresses a necessary action.

• But we know all her suicides are fake

  ➔ Simple present with linking verb + adjective

  ➔ The verb **are** links the subject **suicides** with the adjective **fake**.

• He doesn't think to wonder why

  ➔ Negative modal + infinitive (expressing intention)

  ➔ The negative **doesn't** + base verb **think** followed by **to wonder** shows that he avoids the thought.

• Many miles away something crawls from the slime

  ➔ Adverbial phrase of place + simple present

  ➔ The phrase **Many miles away** functions as an adverbial of place, modifying the verb **crawls**.

• Packed like lemmings into shiny metal boxes

  ➔ Simile with **like** + participle phrase

  ➔ The word **like** introduces a comparison, and **packed** is a past participle describing the commuters.

• He knows that something somewhere has to break

  ➔ That‑clause as object + modal verb **has to**

  ➔ The verb **knows** takes the **that‑clause** **that something somewhere has to break** as its object.