我借人间二两墨 – Bilingual Lyrics Chinese/English

• By: L（桃籽）, 三楠, 周林枫

Lyrics & Translation

Embark on a lyrical journey with '我借人间二两墨' (Wǒ jiè rénjiān èr liǎng mò), a popular Chinese pop song that offers a window into poetic expressions of longing and regret. Learning this song can help you grasp melancholic vocabulary and traditional imagery often found in modern Chinese music, making it a special piece for understanding emotional depth in the language.

[English]

I borrow two ounces of ink from the mortal world

One stroke for longing, one stroke for mistake

In the end, it’s but a fleeting dream of vanity

Hallucinations, illusions of you, traded for loneliness

The evening breeze sweeps the moonlight

Yet no one shares it with me

A melody of longing plays out joy, sorrow, reunion, and parting

Osmanthus falls with the wind

Let me lie drunk in peace

Who knows my heart trembles like the wind?

I borrow two ounces of ink from the mortal world

One stroke for longing, one stroke for mistake

In the end, it’s but a fleeting dream of vanity

Hallucinations, illusions of you, traded for loneliness

I borrow two more ounces of ink from the mortal world

Coloring mountains, waters, and falling flowers

Too many partings in this worldly dust

Including me

Osmanthus falls with the wind

Let me lie drunk in peace

Who knows my heart trembles like the wind?

I borrow two ounces of ink from the mortal world

One stroke for longing, one stroke for mistake

In the end, it’s but a fleeting dream of vanity

Hallucinations, illusions of you, traded for loneliness

I borrow two more ounces of ink from the mortal world

Coloring mountains, waters, and falling flowers

Too many partings in this worldly dust

Including me

I borrow two ounces of ink from the mortal world

One stroke for longing, one stroke for mistake

In the end, it’s but a fleeting dream of vanity

Hallucinations, illusions of you, traded for loneliness

I borrow two more ounces of ink from the mortal world

Coloring mountains, waters, and falling flowers

Too many partings in this worldly dust

Including me

[Chinese]

我借人間二兩墨

一筆相思一筆錯

終得黃粱一場夢

幻聽 幻你 換寂寞

晚風掃月色

卻無人與我

一曲相思奏悲歡離合

桂花伴風落

且由我醉卧

誰知我心隨風般瑟瑟

我借人間二兩墨

一筆相思一筆錯

終得黃粱一場夢

幻聽 幻你 換寂寞

再借人間二兩墨

染山染水染花落

紅塵太多離別客

也有我

桂花伴風落

且由我醉卧

誰知我心隨風般瑟瑟

我借人間二兩墨

一筆相思一筆錯

終得黃粱一場夢

幻聽 幻你 換寂寞

再借人間二兩墨

染山染水染花落

紅塵太多離別客

也有我

我借人間二兩墨

一筆相思一筆錯

終得黃粱一場夢

幻聽 幻你 換寂寞

再借人間二兩墨

染山染水染花落

紅塵太多離別客

也有我

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
借 /jiè/ A2	verb - to borrow
人间 /rénjiān/ B1	noun - human world; mortal realm
墨 /mò/ B2	noun - ink noun - black colour
相思 /xiāngsī/ C1	noun - longing for someone; yearning love
梦 /mèng/ A2	noun - dream verb - to dream
幻 /huàn/ B2	noun - illusion; fantasy verb - to hallucinate (as in 幻听)
寂寞 /jìmò/ B1	adjective - lonely; solitary noun - loneliness
晚风 /wǎn fēng/ B2	noun - evening breeze
月色 /yuè sè/ B2	noun - moonlight; the colour of the moon
曲 /qū/ A2	noun - melody; tune
悲欢离合 /bēi huān lí hé/ C2	noun - joy and sorrow; separations and reunions; the ups and downs of life
桂花 /guì huā/ B2	noun - osmanthus flower
伴 /bàn/ B1	verb - to accompany noun - companion
落 /luò/ B1	verb - to fall noun - fall; drop (as a noun)
醉卧 /zuì wò/ C1	verb - to lie drunk; to recline while intoxicated
心 /xīn/ A1	noun - heart
随 /suí/ A2	verb - to follow; to go with
瑟瑟 /sè sè/ C1	adjective - shivering; trembling (often describing cold wind)
染 /rǎn/ B2	verb - to dye; to stain
红尘 /hóng chén/ C2	noun - worldly affairs; the mortal world

Key Grammar Structures

• 我借**人间**二两墨

  ➔ Noun phrase, Measure word + Noun

  ➔ The use of the measure word '两' (liang) with the noun '墨' (ink) to indicate quantity. '人间' (human world) functions as a modifier.

• 一**笔**相思一笔错

  ➔ Measure word + Noun + Verb

  ➔ Repetition of the measure word '笔' (bǐ) with a noun phrase and verb phrase to indicate a parallel structure and emphasis. '笔' (measure word for strokes)

• 終得**黃粱一場夢**

  ➔ Verb + Object (Noun phrase)

  ➔ The verb '得' (dé - to get, to obtain) followed by the noun phrase '黄粱一場夢' (huángliáng yī chǎng mèng - a dream). This phrase is a common idiom referring to a fleeting, unrealistic dream.

• 幻聽 **幻你** 換寂寞

  ➔ Verb + Object/Pronoun

  ➔ The verb '幻' (huàn - to hallucinate) is repeated. The object '你' (nǐ - you) is used with the second '幻' creating a parallel structure focusing on the subject.

• 晚風掃**月色**

  ➔ Noun phrase

  ➔ The noun phrase '月色' (yuèsè - moonlight), which describes the scene. '晚風' (wǎnfēng-evening wind) acts as an subject.

• 誰知我心**隨風般**瑟瑟

  ➔ Adverbial Phrase

  ➔ The adverbial phrase '隨風般' (suí fēng bān - like the wind) modifies the verb '瑟瑟' (sè sè - shiver).

• 紅塵**太多離別客**

  ➔ Noun phrase

  ➔ The noun phrase '太多离别客' (tàiduō líbiékè - too many parting guests) functions as the subject, describing the numerous people experiencing separation.