Gavilán o Paloma – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: José José
• Album: Reencuentro

Lyrics & Translation

Learning Spanish through 'Gavilán o Paloma' offers a masterclass in metaphors and emotive storytelling. The song features clear enunciation of classic romantic vocabulary and teaches how to express complex emotional states like vulnerability and irony.

[English]

You wouldn't stop staring, you were alone

...

Completely beautiful and sensual

Something pulled me toward you, like a wave

And I went up to you and said, "Hi, how's it going?"

That night, in your arms, I fell into the trap

You hunted the apprentice seducer

And you fed me from your palm

Making me your humble servant

My friend, you've got to see how love is

It turns the tables on whoever takes it, hawk or dove

Poor fool, naive, smooth-talker

I became the dove because I wanted to be the hawk

My friend, you've got to see how love is

It turns the tables on whoever takes it, hawk or dove

...

Slowly, I slid down your dress

...

And you didn't even let me speak

You only sighed, "I need you"

Hold me tighter, tighter

Looking at you, I felt disillusioned

Your warmth only gave me a chill

Slowly, I released you from my arms

And I said, "Please, just stay still"

My friend, you've got to see how love is

It turns the tables on whoever takes it, hawk or dove

Poor fool, naive, smooth-talker

I became the dove because I wanted to be the hawk

My friend, you've got to see how love is

It turns the tables on whoever takes it, hawk or dove

Poor fool, naive, smooth-talker

I became the dove because I wanted to be the hawk

My friend

...

[Spanish]

No dejabas de mirar, estabas sola

Completamente bella y sensual

Algo me arrastró hacia ti, como una ola

Y fui y te dije: "hola, ¿qué tal?"

Esa noche, entre tus brazos, caí en la trampa

Cazaste al aprendiz de seductor

Y me diste de comer sobre tu palma

Haciéndome tu humilde servidor

Amiga, hay que ver cómo es el amor

Que vuelve a a quien lo toma, gavilán o paloma

Pobre tonto, ingenuo, charlatán

Que fui paloma por querer ser gavilán

Amiga, hay que ver cómo es el amor

Que vuelve a a quien lo toma, gavilán o paloma

Fui bajando, lentamente, tu vestido

Y tú no me dejaste ni hablar

Solamente suspirabas "te necesito"

Abrázame más fuerte, más

Al mirarte, me sentí desengañado

Sólo me dio frío tu calor

Lentamente, te solté de entre mis brazos

Y dije: "estáte quieta, por favor"

Amiga, hay que ver cómo es el amor

Que vuelve a quien lo toma, gavilán o paloma

Pobre tonto, ingenuo, charlatán

Que fui paloma por querer ser gavilán

Amiga, hay que ver cómo es el amor

Que vuelve a quien lo toma, gavilán o paloma

Pobre tonto, ingenuo, charlatán

Que fui paloma por querer ser gavilán

Amiga

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
bella be-ya A1	adjective - beautiful
sensual sen-swal B2	adjective - sensual
ola o-la A2	noun - wave
trampa tram-pa B1	noun - trap
cazaste ka-sas-te B1	verb - you hunted/trapped
aprendiz a-pren-dis B2	noun - apprentice
seductor se-duk-tor C1	noun - seducer
humilde u-mil-de B1	adjective - humble
servidor ser-bi-dor B1	noun - servant
gavilán ga-bi-lan C2	noun - hawk
paloma pa-lo-ma A2	noun - dove/pigeon
tonto ton-to A2	adjective - foolish
ingenuo in-he-nwo B2	adjective - naive
charlatán char-la-tan C1	noun - charlatan/talker
desengañado de-sen-ga-nya-do B2	adjective - disillusioned

Key Grammar Structures

• No dejabas de mirar

  ➔ Periphrastic construction 'dejar de + infinitive'

  ➔ Used to express the cessation of an action. "No dejabas" signifies the action was happening continuously in the past.

• Algo me arrastró hacia ti

  ➔ Preterite tense of regular -ar verbs

  ➔ The verb "arrastró" uses the third-person singular preterite ending to describe a completed action in the past.

• Cazaste al aprendiz de seductor

  ➔ Personal 'a' usage

  ➔ The 'a' before "al" is the personal 'a', used because the direct object is a specific person.

• Haciéndome tu humilde servidor

  ➔ Gerund (Gerundio) for simultaneous action

  ➔ The gerund "Haciéndome" describes an action occurring at the same time as the main verb.

• Que vuelve a quien lo toma

  ➔ Relative pronoun 'quien'

  ➔ "Quien" is a relative pronoun used exclusively for persons, serving as the antecedent of the action.

• Que fui paloma por querer ser gavilán

  ➔ Causal construction 'por + infinitive'

  ➔ "Por" followed by the infinitive "querer" explains the motive or cause for the action.

• Fui bajando, lentamente, tu vestido

  ➔ Imperfect progressive 'ir + gerundio'

  ➔ The structure 'ir + gerundio' indicates a gradual or slow progression of the action in the past.

• Abrázame más fuerte

  ➔ Imperative with attached object pronoun

  ➔ "Abrázame" consists of the imperative form of "abrazar" plus the attached pronoun "me".