teenage dream – English Lyrics

• By: Olivia Rodrigo
• Album: GUTS

Lyrics & Translation

Learning a language is about more than just words; it's about understanding culture and emotion. Olivia Rodrigo's “teenage dream” offers a beautiful opportunity to explore the nuances of English through its heartfelt and introspective lyrics. The song's raw honesty about the anxieties of growing up provides a relatable context for learners to connect with complex emotional vocabulary. Its clear and melodic delivery makes it a great song to practice pronunciation and comprehension, all while delving into a theme that is universally understood.

[English]

When am I gonna stop being wise beyond my years and just start being wise?

When am I gonna stop being a pretty young thing to guys?

When am I gonna stop being great for my age and just start being good?

When will it stop being cool to be quietly misunderstood?

I'll blow out the candles, happy birthday to me

Got your whole life ahead of you, you're only 19

But I fear that they already got all the best parts of me

And I'm sorry that I couldn't always be your teenage dream

And when does wide-eyed affection and all good intentions start to not be enough?

When will everyone have every reason to call all my bluffs?

And when are all my excuses of learning my lessons gonna start to feel sad?

Will I spend all the rest of my years wishing I could go back?

I'll blow out the candles, happy birthday to me

Got your whole life ahead of you, you're only 19

But I fear that they already got all the best parts of me

And I'm sorry that I couldn't always be your teenage dream

They all say that it gets better, it gets better the more you grow

Yeah, they all say that it gets better, it gets better, but what if I don't?

Oh, they all say that it gets better, it gets better the more you grow

Yeah, they all say that it gets better, it gets better, but what if I don't?

Oh, they all say that it gets better, it gets better the more you grow

Yeah, they all say that it gets better, it gets better, but what if I don't?

Oh, they all say that it gets better, it gets better the more you grow

Yeah, they all say that it gets better, it gets better, but what if I don't?

...

Is this recording?

Hi, Saoirse

Hopefully, your next album'll be called FART

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
wise /waɪz/ B2	adjective - having knowledge and experience
pretty /ˈprɪti/ A2	adjective - attractive in a delicate way
great /ɡreɪt/ B1	adjective - large in size or importance
cool /kuːl/ B1	adjective - fashionable and attractive
fear /fɪr/ B1	verb - to be afraid of something
blow /bloʊ/ B2	verb - to expel air from the mouth
life /laɪf/ A1	noun - the condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter
birthday /ˈbɜrθdeɪ/ A2	noun - the anniversary of the day on which a person was born
excuse /ɪkˈskjus/ B2	noun - a reason for being unable to do something
intention /ɪnˈtɛnʃən/ B2	noun - an aim or plan
reason /ˈriːzən/ A2	noun - a cause or explanation
lesson /ˈlɛsən/ A1	noun - a unit of teaching
grow /ɡroʊ/ A2	verb - to increase in size or amount

Key Grammar Structures

• When am I gonna stop being wise beyond my years and just start being wise?

  ➔ Present perfect continuous

  ➔ The phrase 'been being' is used to emphasize the duration of a state or condition up to the present.

• When will it stop being cool to be quietly misunderstood?

  ➔ Future simple with 'will'

  ➔ 'Will' is used here to express a future action or state that is not certain or planned.

• I'll blow out the candles, happy birthday to me

  ➔ Future contraction with 'll'

  ➔ 'I'll' is a contraction of 'I will', used for a more informal or conversational tone.

• But I fear that they already got all the best parts of me

  ➔ Present perfect with 'have got'

  ➔ 'Have got' in this context indicates possession or acquisition of something in the past that is relevant now.

• And when does wide-eyed affection and all good intentions start to not be enough?

  ➔ Negative inversion with 'does'

  ➔ The negative inversion with 'does' is used to emphasize the question and make it more formal.

• They all say that it gets better, it gets better the more you grow

  ➔ Present simple with 'gets'

  ➔ 'Gets' is used here to describe a general truth or a habitual action.

• Yeah, they all say that it gets better, it gets better, but what if I don't?

  ➔ Conditional clause with 'what if'

  ➔ 'What if' introduces a hypothetical situation or a condition that is contrary to fact.