Tripping Over Air – English Lyrics

• By: Aidan Bissett

Lyrics & Translation

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
talk /tɔːk/ A1	verb - to speak to someone
hold /hoʊld/ A2	verb - to have or keep in your hands
mind /maɪnd/ B1	noun - the part of a person that thinks and feels
feel /fiːl/ A2	verb - to experience an emotion or sensation
break /breɪk/ B1	verb - to separate into pieces or stop functioning
care /kɛr/ B1	verb - to feel concern or interest
love /lʌv/ A1	noun - a strong feeling of affection
guitar /ɡɪˈtɑːr/ A2	noun - a musical instrument with strings
right /raɪt/ A2	adjective - correct or true
twist /twɪst/ B2	verb - to turn or bend something
air /ɛr/ A1	noun - the invisible mixture of gases we breathe
time /taɪm/ A1	noun - a period during which something happens
rules /ruːlz/ B2	noun - a set of explicit or understood regulations

Key Grammar Structures

• I HEAR YOU TALKING IN YOUR SLEEP AGAIN

  ➔ Present Simple Tense

  ➔ Uses the base form of the verb "hear" to describe a recurring action. "Again" indicates repetition.

• YOU’RE HOLDING ON TO SOMETHING REAL

  ➔ Present Continuous Tense

  ➔ Uses "are holding" to describe an action in progress at the moment of speaking. The phrase "holding on to" implies clinging or maintaining.

• CAN’T GET ENOUGH OF WHAT’S BEEN IN YOUR HEAD

  ➔ Present Perfect Continuous (slightly modified)

  ➔ "What's been in your head" suggests something has been occupying someone's thoughts for a period of time leading up to the present. While not explicitly continuous, the implication is ongoing presence.

• SHE LIKES BOYS THAT PLAY GUITAR

  ➔ Relative Clause (defining)

  ➔ "That play guitar" is a defining relative clause modifying "boys". It specifies which boys she likes.

• TATTOOED ARMS AND A BEAT UP CAR

  ➔ Past Participle as Adjective

  ➔ "Tattooed" and "beat up" are past participles functioning as adjectives to describe "arms" and "car" respectively.

• I KNOW SHE’S GONNA BREAK MY HEART

  ➔ Future with "gonna"

  ➔ "Gonna" is a colloquial contraction of "going to", used to express a future intention or prediction.

• SHE LIKES ME WHEN I PLAY IT COOL

  ➔ Conditional Clause (Type 0 implication)

  ➔ Implies a general truth or habit. "When I play it cool", she likes me. Similar to a Type 0 conditional ("If I play it cool, she likes me").

• I CAN’T HELP IT I HATE THE RULES

  ➔ Modal Verb + Infinitive

  ➔ "Can't help" is a modal verb construction followed by a verb (in this case, implied "doing it" or "feeling it"). It expresses inability to prevent something from happening.

• TRYNA GET IT RIGHT YEAH

  ➔ Reduced Infinitive (Gonna/Wanna/Tryna)

  ➔ "Tryna" is a colloquial shortening of "trying to". It's followed by the verb "get", indicating an attempt or effort.