The Violet Hour
Lyrics:
[English]
Your lips are nettles
Your tongue is wine
Your laughter's liquid
But your body's pine
You love all sailors
But hate the beach
You say, "Come touch me"
But you're always out of reach
In the dark you tell me of a flower
That only blooms in the violet hour
Your arms are lovely
Yellow and rose
Your back's a meadow
Covered in snow
Your thighs are thistles
And hot-house grapes
You breathe your sweet breath
And have me wait
In the dark you tell me of a flower
That only blooms in the violet hour
I turn the lights out
I clean the sheets
You change the station
Turned up the heat
And now you're sitting
Upon your chair
You've got me tangled up
Inside your beautiful black hair
In the dark you tell me of a flower
That only blooms in the violet hour
In the dark you tell me of a flower
That only blooms in the violet hour
...
Vocabulary in this song:
Vocabulary | Meanings |
---|---|
lips /lɪps/ A1 |
|
tongue /tʌŋ/ A1 |
|
wine /waɪn/ A2 |
|
laughter /ˈlæftər/ B1 |
|
body /ˈbɒdi/ A1 |
|
love /lʌv/ A1 |
|
sailors /ˈseɪlər/ A2 |
|
hate /heɪt/ A2 |
|
beach /biːtʃ/ A1 |
|
dark /dɑːrk/ A1 |
|
flower /ˈflaʊər/ A1 |
|
blooms /bluːmz/ B1 |
|
violet /ˈvaɪələt/ B1 |
|
arms /ɑːrmz/ A1 |
|
lovely /ˈlʌvli/ A2 |
|
yellow /ˈjeloʊ/ A1 |
|
rose /roʊz/ A1 |
|
back /bæk/ A1 |
|
meadow /ˈmedoʊ/ B1 |
|
snow /snoʊ/ A1 |
|
breath /breθ/ A1 |
|
sweet /swiːt/ A2 |
|
beautiful /ˈbjuːtɪfl/ A2 |
|
hair /her/ A1 |
|
black /blæk/ A1 |
|
Grammar:
-
Your lips are nettles
➔ Simple Present Tense (Metaphorical)
➔ Uses the simple present tense to describe a state of being. The line is metaphorical; lips aren't literally nettles, but the comparison implies a stinging, unpleasant quality. The verb "are" links the subject "Your lips" with the noun "nettles", showing their characteristics.
-
Your tongue is wine
➔ Simple Present Tense (Metaphorical)
➔ Similar to the previous line, using the simple present to describe a metaphorical state. "Wine" suggests a rich, intoxicating, or perhaps even slightly bitter quality.
-
You say, "Come touch me"
➔ Imperative and Direct Speech
➔ "Come touch me" is a direct quote and an imperative sentence, a command. The verb "come" is used to tell someone to approach, followed by another imperative “touch me”.
-
But you're always out of reach
➔ Simple Present Tense; Adverb of Frequency
➔ Simple present tense indicating a recurring state. "Always" is an adverb of frequency, indicating that this state (being out of reach) happens all the time. "Out of reach" is a prepositional phrase functioning as an adjective, describing the subject.
-
In the dark you tell me of a flower That only blooms in the violet hour
➔ Relative Clause; Simple Present Tense; Prepositional Phrases
➔ "That only blooms in the violet hour" is a relative clause modifying "flower". The relative pronoun "that" introduces the clause. "Only blooms" is simple present tense, describing when the flower blooms. "In the dark", "in the violet hour" are prepositional phrases indicating location or time.
-
You've got me tangled up Inside your beautiful black hair
➔ Present Perfect Continuous (implied); Prepositional Phrases
➔ "You've got" is a contraction of "You have got", which can imply a state resulting from a past action (similar to the present perfect continuous, though here the focus is on the state). The phrase "tangled up inside your beautiful black hair" is a complex prepositional phrase describing the state of being tangled. The implied meaning is that this tangling is an ongoing situation, though the lyrics state the result of that situation.