11 great English-language song lyrics

Steffanie Zazulak
A man with headphones on listening and smiling while he sits on a sofa
Reading time: 5 minutes

What is it about music that helps boost your English skills, confidence and pronunciation? A song can provide an emotional connection between the music and the listener, providing learners with new ways to express their feelings. Music and rhythm have also been shown to benefit memorization, which is a key component of learning.
Here are some of our favorite lyrics to some of our favorite songs:

1. The Beatles – Blackbird

The Beatles are the best band to help you learn English. There are many Beatles songs with catchy melodies and simple lyrics, but Blackbird captures the Fab Four at their most poetic:
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to arise

2. The Cure – Friday I’m In Love

This song is a great way to help learn the days of the week (that may be obvious). Love is also a very popular English word, so this one is for all the romantics out there.

Always take a big bite
It’s such a gorgeous sight
To see you eat in the middle of the night

3. Ed Sheeran – Thinking Out Loud

Another one for the lovers: Ed’s heartfelt lyrics usually do well on the mainstream pop charts; he's one of the world's most popular songwriters. In this ballad, he tells the sweet story of long-time love.

Take me into your loving arms
Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars
Place your head on my beating heart

How do songs help you learn English?
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4. The Smiths – How Soon Is Now?

This classic from Morrissey and co. was voted runner-up in VH1’s Top Lyrics poll, for the lyrics:

So you go and you stand on your own,
and you leave on your own,
and you go home and you cry and you want to die.

It’s the opening lines of the song that are the most intriguing. Firstly, they’re adapted from George Eliot’s novel Middlemarch and include some rather clever double meanings – namely ‘son’ (sun) and ‘heir’ (air).

I am the son
And the heir
Of a shyness that is criminally vulgar

Morrissey quite often uses phrases from novels in his lyrics, so be sure to look out for them in other songs. 

5. Neil Young – Heart of Gold

This was Neil Young’s only number-one hit single from 1972’s Harvest album. He uses simple lyrics and melodies to tell his story of searching for true love.

I’ve been in my mind
It’s such a fine line
That keeps me searchin’for a heart of gold
And I’m gettin’ old

6. U2 – City of Blinding Lights

U2 is the second-best band to help you learn English and frontman Bono is the second-best male artist to help you learn (edged out by Justin Timberlake). The chorus was inspired by a moment during a performance in New York City, when Bono saw the audience lit up and shouted, “Oh, you look so beautiful tonight!”

And I miss you when you’re not around
I’m getting ready to leave the ground
Oh, you look so beautiful tonight
In the city of blinding lights


7. The Police – Every Breath You Take

These lyrics are a good use of repetition and rhyme, which is excellent for helping memorization. Most people consider this a love song, but that’s a common mistake. In 1983, Sting was interviewed for New Musical Express and explained: “I think it’s a nasty little song, really rather evil. It’s about jealousy and surveillance and ownership.”

Every move you make and every vow you break
Every smile you fake, every claim you stake, I’ll be watching you
Every move you make, every step you take, I’ll be watching you

8. Bob Dylan – Mr Tambourine Man

Dylan’s whimsical, poetic lyrics might be difficult for an English language learner to interpret, but that doesn’t mean they’re not a pleasure to listen and sing along to.

Hey! Mr Tambourine Man, play a song for me,
I’m not sleepy and there is no place I’m going to.
Hey! Mr Tambourine Man, play a song for me,
In the jingle jangle morning, I’ll come followin’ you.

9. Madness – Our House

This song takes you through the daily goings-on in a typical household in the '80s. This song has been around for a while, but it is a story that most people can still connect with. This is an excellent song for understanding the concept of nostalgia.

I remember way back then when
everything was true and when
we would have such a very good time,
such a fine time

10. Otis Reading – (Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay

Sadly, Otis Redding died in a plane crash shortly after this song was recorded, and it was released after his death. His lyrics are quite reflective, provoking both contentment and sadness. You can really imagine yourself sitting on the dock with his simple yet descriptive words.

Sittin’ in the morning sun
I’ll be sittin’ when the evening comes
Watching the ships roll in
Then I watch them roll away again

11. Leonard Cohen – Everybody Knows

No list of standout turns of phrase would be complete without Leonard Cohen, a man whose songwriting process is so painstaking that he’ll often spend years on the same song. When quizzed on his process, Cohen once said it often took so long because, “After a while, if you stick with the song long enough, it will yield.” It’s interesting to note then that, even for a master of the English language, the words don’t always come easily. Everybody Knows remains a firm favorite among fans, with the majority of lines starting with the words "Everybody knows…" It’s a lengthy song, but for the sheer beauty of its words and phrasing, the opening lines are a highlight:

Everybody knows that the dice are loaded
Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed
Everybody knows that the war is over. 
Everybody knows that the good guys lost.

Read our posts '8 things you should try to avoid when learning English' and 'How language learning can improve your life for the better'.

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