Here’s a fun way to learn English with songs. Natalie Imbruglia is a good sport – the Australian singer joins British comedian David Armand on stage for his very special mime performance of her top 10 hit ‘Torn.’
Here’s what you can do:
1. Watch the performance and see how much you understand
2. Now go to the lyrics for the song – which you can print from here.
3. Watch the song again – can you see the humour in some things he does? For example, why does he act like he’s going fishing at one point? Hint: check out the meaning of real and then check reel.
nb Torn comes from the verb to tear – to rip something, for example, a piece of paper so that it is now in two or more bits. Torn is the 3rd form (the past participle – tear * tore * torn).
Other Ways Of Using Torn
You can say:
- The country was torn by civil war for many years – this means there were a lot of problems there and the place was seriously damaged by what happened
Singer Lourde also used this word in her hit ‘Royals‘:
I’m not proud of my address/In the torn up town, no postcode envy - I’m torn between marrying Matilda and accepting the new job in New York – this means you’re finding it very difficult to decide between two important things
Likewise, on google, you can see this commonly searched phrase:
- I’m torn between two guys (strangely it’s less popular when I type in ‘girls’!)
Other expressions with torn from songs:
Wordbank
She’s a good sport – she’s ok with someone having a bit of a laugh (or fun) at her expense.
Mime (v, n) = when an actor tells a story by using his gestures (hands, facial expressions and so on) and without using words
Photo Credits
Image courtesy of my computer & the cool Mac I have. No copyright breach intended.
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What do you think?