the cure – English Lyrics

• By: Olivia Rodrigo
• Album: you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the emotional depths of English through 'the cure.' This song is perfect for learners to study evocative metaphors and the expression of empathy and longing in a contemporary pop ballad.

[English]

All the pretty girls in the foreground of my mind

I thought I'd done enough, but they keep moving the line

I thought I found the antidote this time

I thought I found the antidote this time

All the nights I spend fighting bad thoughts in my room

Feeling so alone, might as well be on the moon

I thought I found the antidote with you

I thought I found the antidote with you

But my head is full of poison

And my heart is full of doubt

I got toxins in my bloodstream

You tried hard to suck them out

And it feels like medication

And it's good for me, I'm sure

But it don't matter how your love feels anymore

It'll never be the cure

It'll never be the cure

Used to play a game in my head when I'd date a guy

Tally up the girls that he fucked till I start to cry

I thought I found the antidote this time

I thought I found the antidote this time

But I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

And my head is full of poison

And my heart is full of doubt

I got toxins in my bloodstream

You tried hard to suck them out

And it feels like medication

And it's good for me, I'm sure

But it don't matter how your love feels anymore

It'll never be the cure

It'll never be the cure

Oh, 'cause baby, I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

I'm unraveled

Why can't you come stitch me up?

Why can't it ever be enough?

Why can't you come stitch me up?

Why can't it ever be enough?

It's not enough

Oh, because my head is full of poison

And my heart is full of doubt

I got toxins in my bloodstream

You tried so hard to suck out

And it feels like medication

And it's good for me, I'm sure

But it don't matter how your love feels anymore

It'll never be the cure

It'll never be the cure

It'll never be

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
foreground /ˈfɔːrˌɡraʊnd/ B2	noun - the part of a scene or picture that is nearest to and in front of the viewer
antidote /ˈæntɪdoʊt/ C1	noun - a medicine taken or given to counteract a particular poison
poison /ˈpɔɪzən/ B1	noun - a substance that causes death or injury if swallowed or absorbed
doubt /daʊt/ A2	noun - a feeling of uncertainty or lack of conviction
toxins /ˈtɒksɪnz/ C1	noun - poisonous substances produced within living cells or organisms
bloodstream /ˈblʌdstriːm/ B2	noun - the blood circulating through the body
medication /ˌmɛdɪˈkeɪʃən/ B2	noun - a drug or other form of medicine used to treat an illness
cure /kjʊər/ B1	noun - a solution to a problem or a medicine to restore health
unraveled /ʌnˈrævəld/ C1	adjective - having become undone or disorganized; mentally unstable
stitch /stɪtʃ/ B1	verb - to join or mend with a needle and thread
tally /ˈtæli/ C1	verb - to count or add up

Key Grammar Structures

• I thought I'd done enough

  ➔ Past Perfect Tense

  ➔ Used "I'd done" to describe an action completed before another point in the past.

• Might as well be on the moon

  ➔ Modal phrase 'might as well'

  ➔ Used to suggest doing something because there is no better alternative, often implying a feeling of resignation.

• You tried hard to suck them out

  ➔ Adverbial usage of 'hard'

  ➔ Here, "hard" functions as an adverb describing the intensity of the effort in the verb "tried".

• It don't matter how your love feels anymore

  ➔ Non-standard verb agreement (Subject-Verb Agreement)

  ➔ In casual speech/songwriting, "don't" is often used with third-person singular subjects instead of "doesn't".

• Tally up the girls that he fucked

  ➔ Relative clause with 'that'

  ➔ The clause "that he fucked" modifies the noun "girls", specifying which girls are being tallied.

• Why can't you come stitch me up?

  ➔ Interrogative negative modal verb

  ➔ Used to express frustration or a plea for help by asking why an action is not being taken.

• I'm unraveled

  ➔ Passive construction used as an adjective

  ➔ The past participle "unraveled" describes the subject's emotional state, implying they have come apart.

• You tried so hard to suck out

  ➔ Intensifier 'so'

  ➔ The word "so" is used as an intensifier to emphasize the degree of effort (hard).