'Blinding Lights' and English Grammar
2020-03-13
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1Blinding Lights, by Canadian performer The Weeknd, is one of the most popular songs in the world.
2As of early March, Blinding Lights is at the top of music service Shazam's Global Top 200 list of popular songs.
3It is also on the Top Hits 2020 list of Spotify, another music service.
4Today on Everyday Grammar, we will explain the grammar behind the name of the song and some of its lyrics.
5Let us begin by examining the song's title: Blinding Lights.
6The most important word is lights.
7It is the plural form of the noun light.
8In English, only certain kinds of words come before nouns.
9Often, the word that comes before a noun is an adjective.
10The word blinding is an adjective.
11It helps modify, or change the meaning, of the noun lights.
12The grammatical pattern we find in the song's title would be the same if the adjective changed.
13In other words, the pattern would still be adjective + noun.
14The title could have been flashing lights, blinking lights or bright lights.
15But those titles are not nearly as strong as blinding lights.
16This term suggests that the lights overpower a person.
17Blinding means so bright or strong that a person cannot see.
18This idea is important in a song that talks about strong feelings of loneliness and sadness.
19It is also an important idea for a song set in Las Vegas, Nevada - a city known for strong lights and all kinds of nightlife.
20We know the song takes place in Las Vegas because the singer uses another name for the city: Sin City.
21The term appears in the song:
22I look around and Sin City's cold and empty
23Now let's listen to more of the song.
24I been tryna call
25The words "I been tryna call" are a kind of informal speech.
26The statement might become clearer with a few more words:
27I have been trying to call.
28This is an example of what English teachers call the present perfect progressive.
29The singer suggests that an event - a telephone call - took place in the past.
30The Weeknd suggests he has tried calling many other times up until just recently.
31Often, when English speakers use the present perfect progressive, they also say an amount of time that they have been doing that activity.
32For example, you might hear someone say:
33Tom has been dancing for two hours.
34This suggests that Tom began dancing two hours ago - and continues dancing in the present.
35Note that in Blinding Lights, the singer did not give a specific amount of time.
36He suggests that he has been trying to call a person.
37He does not say for how long - perhaps hours, days or even weeks.
38Now, let's compare the two lines:
39I been tryna call.
40I have been trying to call.
41In the song, the word have is missing. The Weeknd also combines the words trying to.
42So, I have been becomes I been and trying to becomes tryna.
43You will hear this manner of speaking in all kinds of popular culture - songs, films and so on.
44You might also occasionally see it in nonfiction writing that has reported speech.
45But a word of warning. You should not use some of the ideas that we discussed today on an English exam.
46For example, teachers and test graders want to see the words trying to instead of tryna.
47However, if you like listening to music or watching films in English, you should learn to understand how some speakers use different kinds of English.
48We will end with a few words from the song:
49I been tryna call
50I been on my own for long enough
51Maybe you can show me how to love, maybe...
52I'm John Russell.
1Blinding Lights, by Canadian performer The Weeknd, is one of the most popular songs in the world. 2As of early March, Blinding Lights is at the top of music service Shazam's Global Top 200 list of popular songs. It is also on the Top Hits 2020 list of Spotify, another music service. 3Today on Everyday Grammar, we will explain the grammar behind the name of the song and some of its lyrics. 4The title 5Let us begin by examining the song's title: Blinding Lights. The most important word is lights. It is the plural form of the noun light. 6In English, only certain kinds of words come before nouns. Often, the word that comes before a noun is an adjective. 7The word blinding is an adjective. It helps modify, or change the meaning, of the noun lights. 8The grammatical pattern we find in the song's title would be the same if the adjective changed. In other words, the pattern would still be adjective + noun. 9The title could have been flashing lights, blinking lights or bright lights. But those titles are not nearly as strong as blinding lights. 10This term suggests that the lights overpower a person. Blinding means so bright or strong that a person cannot see. 11This idea is important in a song that talks about strong feelings of loneliness and sadness. 12It is also an important idea for a song set in Las Vegas, Nevada - a city known for strong lights and all kinds of nightlife. 13We know the song takes place in Las Vegas because the singer uses another name for the city: Sin City. The term appears in the song: 14I look around and Sin City's cold and empty 15Different kinds of English 16Now let's listen to more of the song. 17I been tryna call 18The words "I been tryna call" are a kind of informal speech. 19The statement might become clearer with a few more words: 20I have been trying to call. 21This is an example of what English teachers call the present perfect progressive. The singer suggests that an event - a telephone call - took place in the past. The Weeknd suggests he has tried calling many other times up until just recently. 22Often, when English speakers use the present perfect progressive, they also say an amount of time that they have been doing that activity. 23For example, you might hear someone say: 24Tom has been dancing for two hours. 25This suggests that Tom began dancing two hours ago - and continues dancing in the present. 26Note that in Blinding Lights, the singer did not give a specific amount of time. He suggests that he has been trying to call a person. He does not say for how long - perhaps hours, days or even weeks. 27Now, let's compare the two lines: 28I been tryna call. 29I have been trying to call. 30In the song, the word have is missing. The Weeknd also combines the words trying to. 31So, I have been becomes I been and trying to becomes tryna. 32You will hear this manner of speaking in all kinds of popular culture - songs, films and so on. You might also occasionally see it in nonfiction writing that has reported speech. 33Closing thoughts 34But a word of warning. You should not use some of the ideas that we discussed today on an English exam. For example, teachers and test graders want to see the words trying to instead of tryna. 35However, if you like listening to music or watching films in English, you should learn to understand how some speakers use different kinds of English. 36We will end with a few words from the song: 37I been tryna call 38I been on my own for long enough 39Maybe you can show me how to love, maybe... 40I'm John Russell. 41John Russell wrote this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 42_____________________________________________________________ 43Words in This Story 44grammar - n. the system and structure of a language 45lyric - n. usually plural the words of a song 46title - n. the name of book, play or work of art 47plural - adj. involving more than one 48certain - adj. fixed; known for sure 49pattern - n. the regular and repeated way in which something happens or is done 50sin - n. wrongdoing; criminal behavior 51informal - adj. of or related to something unstructured or unofficial 52manner - n. a way in which things are done 53nonfiction - adj. writing that is based on facts, real people and events 54We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.