Old Phone – English Lyrics

• By: Ed Sheeran
• Album: Play

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the raw emotion of Ed Sheeran's "Old Phone." This poignant ballad offers a unique opportunity to explore the nuances of English through heartfelt storytelling, relatable themes of nostalgia and loss, and Sheeran's signature stripped-back acoustic style. Learn how simple, everyday objects can hold profound meaning and how to articulate complex emotions in a beautiful and accessible way.

[English]

♪ I found my old phone today ♪

♪ In a box that I had hidden away ♪

♪ Nostalgia trying to lead me astray ♪

♪ Maybe I'll unwrite some wrongs ♪

♪ I charged the battery again ♪

♪ Combinations cos my passcode had changed ♪

♪ Opened up and saw familiar names ♪

♪ Now I wonder where they've gone ♪

♪ Conversations with my dead friends ♪

♪ Messages from all my exes ♪

♪ I kind of think that this was best left ♪

♪ In the past where it belongs ♪

♪ I feel an overwhelming sadness ♪

♪ Of all the friends I do not have left ♪

♪ Seeing how my family has fractured ♪

♪ Growing up and moving on ♪

♪ I found my old phone today ♪

♪ Arguments that I tried to keep at bay ♪

♪ The ones who loved me I just pushed them away ♪

♪ Couldn't tell the difference from the leeches ♪

♪ My closed hand still holds some mates ♪

♪ But if I'm open it gets smaller day by day ♪

♪ I can't tell if it is pleasure or pain ♪

♪ Trying to keep within my remit... ♪

Yeah, I want to see him! Come out here, Ed.

♪ Conversations with my dead friends ♪

♪ Messages from all my exes ♪

♪ I kind of think that this was best left ♪

♪ There in the past where it belongs ♪

♪ I feel an overwhelming sadness ♪

♪ Of all the friends I do not have left ♪

♪ Seeing how my family has fractured ♪

♪ Growing up and moving on ♪

♪ Hoo-ooh ♪

Ah, the video that I submitted

is a video of our two girls.

They are two of five.

These two are on this side of heaven

the other three are on the other side.

I think in the video I sent

our oldest was about to turn 12 and our youngest was four.

And they were just goofing off and just being sisters.

And that was it.

I ended up submitting a video

of my friends and I playing in the snow at midnight

two days after my long-term boyfriend and I had broken up.

Like, I'm happy now

and I think that's, like, the most important thing.

And I hope that he's happy too.

The video is me and my grandmother dancing

at a wedding. She had so much life,

so much joy in her heart and her spirit.

And we're just moving around

like it's just us two in the world.

And I miss her.

She passed away a couple of years ago, but she's amazing.

[WOMAN]: It was really cool...

to watch that and to be able to just share with him

some of our stories.

That was nice.

[AUDIENCE CHEERS]

♪ I found my old phone today ♪

♪ So full of love ♪

♪ Yet so full of hate ♪

♪ I put it back inside there from whence it came ♪

♪ Nothing good will come from regretting ♪

♪ Conversations with my dead friends ♪

♪ Messages from all my exes ♪

♪ I kind of think that this was best left ♪

♪ There in the past where it belongs ♪

♪ I feel an overwhelming sadness ♪

♪ Of all the friends I do not have left ♪

♪ Seeing how my family has fractured ♪

♪ Growing up and moving on ♪

♪ I found my old phone today ♪

Thank you. - [AUDIENCE CHEERS]

I wanted to just make it feel

like the song does, which is...

yeah, raw, stripped back

emotional, nostalgic and special.

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
found /faʊnd/ A2	verb - to discover something after searching for it
hidden /ˈhɪd.ən/ B1	verb - to keep out of sight adjective - not visible or accessible
charge /tʃɑːrdʒ/ B2	verb - to supply electricity to a device
familiar /fəˈmɪl.jər/ B1	adjective - well known from prior experience
messages /ˈmɛs.ɪdʒɪz/ A2	noun - text or voice data sent electronically
exes /ˈɛgz/ B2	noun - former romantic partners
friends /frɛndz/ A1	noun - people with whom one has a bond of mutual affection
fractured /ˈfræk.tʃərd/ B2	verb - to break or crack
growing /ˈɡroʊ.ɪŋ/ B1	verb - to increase in size or amount
move /muːv/ A2	verb - to change position or go in a new direction
moving /ˈmuː.vɪŋ/ B1	verb - to change position
break /breɪk/ A2	verb - to cause something to separate into pieces
pain /peɪn/ A2	noun - physical or emotional suffering

Key Grammar Structures

• I found my old phone today

  ➔ Simple past tense

  ➔ The verb 'found' is in the simple past tense, indicating a completed action in the past.

• Maybe I'll unwrite some wrongs

  ➔ Future simple with 'will'

  ➔ 'I'll' is a contraction for 'I will', indicating a future intention to perform an action.

• Arguments that I tried to keep at bay

  ➔ Past simple with relative clause

  ➔ The phrase uses a relative clause ('that I tried to keep at bay') to provide more information about 'Arguments'.

• I feel an overwhelming sadness

  ➔ Present simple

  ➔ 'Feel' is in the present simple tense, indicating a current state or emotion.

• Messages from all my exes

  ➔ Noun phrase

  ➔ The phrase 'Messages from all my exes' is a noun phrase that refers to a specific type of content.

• Growing up and moving on

  ➔ Gerund phrase

  ➔ The gerunds 'growing' and 'moving' indicate ongoing actions or processes.

• Nothing good will come from regretting

  ➔ Future simple passive

  ➔ The structure 'Nothing good will come from' indicates a future outcome based on a certain action.