Te Venero – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: ROSALÍA
• Album: Los Ángeles

Lyrics & Translation

Embark on a linguistic and emotional journey with ROSALÍA's "Te Venero," a profound dive into traditional flamenco reimagined. This song offers a unique opportunity to explore the lyrical beauty and emotional depth of Spanish, showcasing Rosalía's early mastery in blending classic sounds with innovative vocal delivery, making it a special piece for language learners and music enthusiasts alike.

[English]

The flower that I picked

The flower that I picked

And a flower that I picked

Which they call a pansy

Reminded me of the torments

That a woman caused me

But I left for Cuba

But I left for Cuba

To try my luck

Without any hope at all

And in Cuba I found

And in giving her my love

She loved me like no other

...

Oh, beautiful Cuba, I adore you

Beautiful Cuba, I adore you

For your peerless beauty

For your peerless beauty

How lovely you seemed to me

When I spoke to you at the dance

You seemed to me like another

More beautiful and more precious

Than the, than the coffee blossom

Man is born, and upon birth

Man is born, and upon birth

Prison is his destiny

Because he comes only

To suffer continuously

One night when the moon

One night when the moon

Did not give its beautiful light

Only a single star

Lit up my fortune

Without any hope at all

I reached the grave

And I placed a dahlia

As proof of my love

Where are the cold remains

Of the woman I adored?

Where are the cold remains

Of the woman I adored?

Where are the cold remains

Of the woman I adored?

...

[Spanish]

La flor que yo corté

La flor que yo corté

Y una flor que yo corté

Que le llaman pensamiento

Me recordó los tormentos

Que me causó una mujer

Pero a Cuba me marché

Pero a Cuba yo marché

Para probar mi fortuna

Sin esperanza ninguna

Y en Cuba encontré

Y en darle mi querer

Me quiso como ninguna

¡Ay!, Cuba linda te venero

Cuba linda te venero

Por tu belleza sin par

Por tu belleza sin par

Qué guapa me has parecío

Cuando en el baile te hablé

Que me pareciste otra

Más bonita y más preciosa

Que la, que la mata del café

Nace el hombre y al nacer

Nace el hombre y al nacer

Cárcel por destino tiene

Porque solamente viene

A un continuo padecer

Una noche en que la luna

Una noche en que la luna

No daba su luz tan bella

Tan solamente una estrella

Que alumbraba mi fortuna

Sin esperanza ninguna

Hasta el sepulcro llegué

Y una dalia coloqué

En prueba del amor mío

¿Dónde están los restos fríos?

De la mujer que adoré

¿Dónde están los restos fríos?

De la mujer que adoré

¿Dónde están los restos fríos?

De la mujer que adoré

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
venero be.ne.ɾo C2	verb - to venerate or adore
tormentos toɾ.men.tos B2	noun - torments or suffering
fortuna foɾ.tu.na B1	noun - fortune or luck
esperanza es.pe.ɾan.θa A2	noun - hope
belleza be.ʝe.θa A2	noun - beauty
padecer pa.ðe.θeɾ B2	verb - to suffer
sepulcro se.pul.kɾo C1	noun - grave or tomb
adoré a.ðo.ɾe B2	verb - to adore or worship
dalia da.lja C2	noun - dahlia flower
cárcel kaɾ.θel A2	noun - prison
guapa gwa.pa A1	adjective - pretty or beautiful
preciosa pɾe.θjo.sa A2	adjective - precious or lovely
destino des.ti.no B1	noun - destiny or fate
alumbraba a.lum.bɾa.βa B2	verb - to illuminate or shine
pensamiento pen.sa.mjen.to A2	noun - thought or pansy (flower)

Key Grammar Structures

• Y una flor que yo corté

  ➔ Relative clause with past tense

  ➔ The word "que" introduces a relative clause that modifies "flor" and the verb "corté" is in the past tense.

• Para probar mi fortuna

  ➔ Infinitive of purpose (para + infinitive)

  ➔ The infinitive "probar" follows "para" to express the purpose: "to test".

• Sin esperanza ninguna

  ➔ Double negative construction

  ➔ Both "sin" (without) and "ninguna" (none) are negative words, reinforcing the absence of hope.

• ¡Ay! Cuba linda te venero

  ➔ Exclamation with direct object pronoun "te"

  ➔ The verb "venero" is followed by the direct‑object pronoun "te" meaning “you”, showing a personal, emotional address.

• Nace el hombre y al nacer

  ➔ Infinitive used as a temporal clause (al + infinitive)

  ➔ The phrase "al nacer" uses "al" + infinitive to mean “when he/she is born”.

• Una noche en que la luna no daba su luz tan bella

  ➔ Relative clause with imperfect tense "daba"

  ➔ The verb "daba" (imperfect) is inside the relative clause "que la luna no daba su luz", describing a past ongoing action.

• ¿Dónde están los restos fríos?

  ➔ Interrogative sentence with verb "estar" and location adverb "dónde"

  ➔ The interrogative adverb "dónde" asks for location, and the verb "están" (3rd‑person plural of "estar") agrees with the plural subject "los restos".

• Me quiso como ninguna

  ➔ Comparative structure with "como" + negative quantifier "ninguna"

  ➔ The phrase "como ninguna" means “like nobody”, using "como" (like) together with the negative "ninguna" to create a strong comparison.

• Hasta el sepulcro llegué

  ➔ Prepositional phrase "hasta" + destination + past tense verb

  ➔ The preposition "hasta" (until/to) introduces the endpoint "el sepulcro", and "llegué" (I arrived) is in the simple past.