The reason why I love teaching English through songs so much is because they have absolutely all the grammar that we study in semesters. So I opened the text of this beautiful Adele song and immediately noticed a number of beautiful grammatical examples. Ready to share with you again!
When We Were Young by Adele Lyrics
Everybody loves the things you do
From the way you talk to the way you move
Everybody here is watching you
‘Cause you feel like home
You’re like a dream come true
But if by chance you’re here alone
Can I have a moment before I go?
‘Cause I’ve been by myself all night long
Hoping you’re someone I used to know
[Chorus:]
You look like a movie
You sound like a song
My God, this reminds me
Of when we were young
Let me photograph you in this light
In case it is the last time
That we might be exactly like we were
Before we realized
We were sad of getting old
It made us restless
It was just like a movie
It was just like a song
I was so scared to face my fears
Nobody told me that you’d be here
And I swear you moved overseas
That’s what you said, when you left me
[Chorus]
When we were young [4x]
It’s hard to admit that
Everything just takes me back
To when you were there
To when you were there
And a part of me keeps holding on
Just in case it hasn’t gone
I guess I still care
Do you still care?
[Chorus]
GRAMMAR
First Conditional:
“But if by chance you’re here alone
Can I have a moment before I go?”
“In case you’re here alone,
can I say something before I leave?”
More than once I wrote to you that the first conditional is used in cases where we are talking about possible situations in the future. This particular example is interesting because instead of the usual will in the result clause (“can I have a moment before I go”), can is used. This is a reminder that you can use different modal verbs in this construction, not only will. The modal verb chosen will depend on the context.
Present Perfect:
“ ‘ Cause I ‘ve been by myself all night long ” _
“And a part of me keeps holding on
Just in case it hasn’t gone “
“Part of me is still holding on
In case all is not lost”
Present perfect for that and present, to be somehow connected with the present. If you look at the examples of the song, you will see that the actions from the past that the singer describes are closely related to the present. She’s been alone all night, so she wants to talk now. Part of it is holding on now, because in the past, perhaps not all is lost. To learn how to use the present perfect, you must first learn to feel the connection of past actions with the present.
Used to:
“‘Cause I’ve been by myself all night long
Hoping you’re someone I used to know “
“Because I’ve been here alone all night
Hoping you’re the one I’ve ever known”
Remember used to? This is such a beautiful construction that is very similar to the past simple, but still different. Used to – about habits from the past that are no longer relevant in the present. That is, if you loved to play football as a child, but don’t do it anymore, say I used to play football when I was little.
Reported Speech:
“Nobody told me that you’d be here
”
The most important thing to remember about reported speech is the step back in time that we take with any grammatical tense when we quote someone’s words. Present simple becomes past simple, can becomes could, and will becomes would. This is exactly what happened in the song example. Compare, Nobody told me “He will be here” – Nobody told me that you would be here.
VOCABULARY:
- By chance – without plan; accidentally – by chance, suddenly
- Remind – to tell someone again about an event from the past or about a fact that they used to know – remind
- Restless – not willing or able to keep still because you are nervous, bored, or impatient – restless
- Overseas – happening or existing in a country across the sea from your country
- Admit – to agree that something is true, especially when you are unhappy, sorry, or surprised about it – confirm
- Hold on – to wait – wait
- To face (verb) – to be opposite someone or something so that your face or front is towards them – to meet, to face something
When We Were Young by Adele Lyrics Alternative
[Verse 1:]
Everyone loves what you do,
From the way you talk
To the way you move your body.
Everyone here is watching you,
Cause you’re acting like you’re at home.
You’re like a dream come true
But just in case you’re here alone
Can I have you for a minute
Before I go?
After all, I was alone all night,
And I cherished the hope that you are the one
I once knew.
[Pre-Chorus:]
You look like a movie character.
And your voice is like a song.
Oh Lord, this reminds me of
when we were young.
[Chorus:]
Let me take a picture of you in this light
Just in case it’s the last time
When we might be just the same We
used to be
Before we realized
We’re sad because we’re getting old
We got worried about it .
It was like a movie,
It was like a song.
[Verse 2:]
I was so afraid to face my fears ’cause
no one told me you’d be here.
And I swear I thought you went abroad
Cause that’s what you said when you left me.
[Pre-Chorus:]
You look like a movie character.
And your voice is like a song.
Oh Lord, this reminds me of
when we were young.
[Chorus:]
Let me take a picture of you in this light
Just in case it’s the last time
When we might be just the same We
used to be
Before we realized
We’re sad because we’re getting old
We got worried about it .
It was like a movie,
It was like a song
[Bridge:]
When we were young,
When we were young,
When we were young,
When we were young.
[Verse 3:]
It’s hard to win my heart again.
Everything takes me back to
the times you were here, to
the times you were here.
And a part of me keeps holding
on Just in case the feelings haven’t gone away.
I think I still love.
Are you still in love?
[Chorus:]
It was like a movie.
It was like a song.
Oh God, this reminds me of
when we were young.
[Bridge:]
When we were young,
When we were young,
When we were young,
When we were young.
[Chorus:]
Let me take a picture of you in this light
Just in case it’s the last time
When we might be just the same
as we used to be
Before we realized
How sad we got old
And lost for this peace.
It makes me so angry that I’m getting old, making me
act reckless.
It was like a movie
It was like a song
When we were young.
