Swing Life Away – English Lyrics

• By: Rise Against
• Album: Geffen Records

Lyrics & Translation

Discover a different side of the punk rock band Rise Against with their acoustic ballad, "Swing Life Away." This song offers a unique opportunity to explore English through its simple, yet profound lyrics about finding joy in imperfection and the importance of human connection. Its gentle melody and relatable message make it a special and accessible song for language learners to connect with and appreciate.

[English]

♪ Am I loud and clear, or am I breaking up ♪

♪ Am I still your charm, or am I just bad luck ♪

♪ Are we getting closer, or are we just getting more lost ♪

♪ I'll show you mine if you show me yours first ♪

♪ Let's compare scars, I'll tell you whose is worse ♪

♪ Let's unwrite these pages ♪

♪ And replace them with our own words ♪

♪ We live on front porches and swing life away ♪

♪ We get by just fine here on minimum wage ♪

♪ If love is a labor I'll slave till the end ♪

♪ I won't cross these streets until you hold my hand ♪

♪ I've been here so long, I think that it's time to move ♪

♪ The winter's so cold, summer's over too soon ♪

♪ Let's pack our bags and settle down where palm trees grow ♪

♪ I've got some friends, some that I hardly know ♪

♪ But we've had some times, I wouldn't trade for the world ♪

♪ We chase these days down with talks of ♪

♪ The places that we will go ♪

♪ We live on front porches and swing life away ♪

♪ We get by just fine here on minimum wage ♪

♪ If love is a labor I'll slave till the end ♪

♪ I won't cross these streets until you hold my hand ♪

♪ Until you hold my hand ♪

♪ I'll show you mine if you show me yours first ♪

♪ Let's compare scars, I'll tell you whose is worse ♪

♪ Let's unwrite these pages ♪

♪ and replace them with our own words ♪

♪ We live on front porches and swing life away ♪

♪ We get by just fine here on minimum wage ♪

♪ If love is a labor I'll slave till the end ♪

♪ I won't cross these streets until you hold my hand ♪

♪ Swing life away ♪

♪ Swing life away ♪

♪ Swing life away ♪

♪ Swing life away ♪

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
live /lɪv/ A2	verb - to be alive or exist
swing /swɪŋ/ B1	verb/noun - to move backward and forward or from side to side
away /əˈweɪ/ A2	adverb - to a different place or position
friend /frɛnd/ A2	noun - a person with whom one has a bond of mutual affection
scar /skɑːr/ B1	noun - a mark left on the skin after a cut or wound
worse /wɜːrs/ B2	adjective - of poorer quality or worse condition
own /oʊn/ A2	pronoun/adjective - belonging to oneself
words /wɜːrdz/ A2	noun - units of language used to communicate
money /ˈmʌn.i/ A2	noun - a medium of exchange in the form of coins or banknotes
end /ɛnd/ A2	noun/verb - the final part of something
hand /hænd/ A1	noun - the part of the body at the end of the arm
move /muːv/ A2	verb - to change position or go to a new place

Key Grammar Structures

• Am I loud and clear, or am I breaking up

  ➔ Present continuous tense used for ongoing actions or arrangements

  ➔ The phrase "am I breaking up" uses the present continuous to ask about a current state of disrupted audio quality.

• Let's compare scars, I'll tell you whose is worse

  ➔ Conditional clause with "if" (implied), expressing willingness and hypothetical comparison

  ➔ The phrase "I'll tell you whose is worse" uses the conditional "will" to express willingness to share a judgment based on comparison.

• And replace them with our own words

  ➔ Verb "replace" used with an object and preposition "with" to indicate substitution

  ➔ The phrase "replace them with our own words" employs the verb "replace" followed by an object "them" and a preposition "with" to describe substitution.

• We live on front porches and swing life away

  ➔ Simple present tense indicating habitual action or general truth

  ➔ The sentence "We live on front porches" uses simple present to describe a habitual situation.

• I'll slave till the end

  ➔ Future tense with "will" indicating intention or determination

  ➔ The phrase "I'll slave till the end" uses "will" to express the speaker's determination to work hard and persist.

• And swing life away

  ➔ Imperative or motivational phrase using base verb without subject

  ➔ The phrase "swing life away" uses the base form of the verb "swing" to express a casual or motivational call to enjoy life freely.