Tigresa Lyrics in English Caetano Veloso
Below, I translated the lyrics of the song Tigresa by Caetano Veloso from Portuguese to English.
Uma tigresa de unhas negras e íris cor de mel
A tigress with black nails and honey-colored irises
Uma mulher, uma beleza que me aconteceu
A woman, a beauty that happened to me
Esfregando a pele de ouro marrom do seu corpo contra o meu
Rubbing the golden brown skin of her body against mine
Me falou que o mal é bom e o bem, cruel
She told me evil is good and good, cruel
Enquanto os pelos dessa deusa tremem ao vento ateu
While the hairs of this goddess tremble in the atheist wind
Ela me conta sem certeza tudo o que viveu
She tells me without certainty everything she lived
Que gostava de política em mil novecentos e sessenta e seis
She liked politics in nineteen sixty-six
E hoje dança no frenetic Dancin' Days
And today she dances in the frenetic Dancin' Days
Ela me conta que era atriz e trabalhou no Hair
She tells me she was an actress and worked in Hair
Com alguns homens foi feliz, com outros foi mulher
With some men she was happy, with others she was a woman
Que tem muito ódio no coração, que tem dado muito amor
She has a lot of hate in her heart, she has given a lot of love
E espalhado muito prazer e muita dor
And spread much pleasure and much pain
Mas ela ao mesmo tempo diz que tudo vai mudar
But she also says everything will change
Pois ela vai ser o que quis, inventando um lugar
For she'll be what she wanted, inventing a place
Onde a gente e a natureza feliz
Where we and happy nature
Vivam sempre em comunhão
Always live in communion
E a tigresa possa mais do que o leão
And the tigress can do more than the lion
As garras da felina me marcaram o coração
The feline's claws marked my heart
Mas as besteiras de menina que ela disse, não
But the girlish nonsense she said, no
E eu corri pro violão, num lamento, e a manhã nasceu azul
And I ran to the guitar, in a lament, and the morning dawned blue
Como é bom poder tocar um instrumento
How good it is to be able to play an instrument
Uma tigresa de unhas negras e íris cor de mel
A tigress with black nails and honey-colored irises
Uma mulher, uma beleza que me aconteceu
A woman, a beauty that happened to me
Esfregando a pele de ouro marrom do seu corpo contra o meu
Rubbing the golden brown skin of her body against mine
Me falou que o mal é bom e o bem, cruel
She told me evil is good and good, cruel
Enquanto os pelos dessa deusa tremem ao vento ateu
While the hairs of this goddess tremble in the atheist wind
Ela me conta sem certeza tudo o que viveu
She tells me without certainty everything she lived
Que gostava de política em mil novecentos e sessenta e seis
She liked politics in nineteen sixty-six
E hoje dança no frenetic Dancin' Days
And today she dances in the frenetic Dancin' Days
Ela me conta que era atriz e trabalhou no Hair
She tells me she was an actress and worked in Hair
Com alguns homens foi feliz, com outros foi mulher
With some men she was happy, with others she was a woman
Que tem muito ódio no coração, que tem dado muito amor
She has a lot of hate in her heart, she has given a lot of love
E espalhado muito prazer e muita dor
And spread much pleasure and much pain
Mas ela ao mesmo tempo diz que tudo vai mudar
But she also says everything will change
Pois ela vai ser o que quis, inventando um lugar
For she'll be what she wanted, inventing a place
Onde a gente e a natureza feliz
Where we and happy nature
Vivam sempre em comunhão
Always live in communion
E a tigresa possa mais do que o leão
And the tigress can do more than the lion
As garras da felina me marcaram o coração
The feline's claws marked my heart
Mas as besteiras de menina que ela disse, não
But the girlish nonsense she said, no
E eu corri pro violão, num lamento, e a manhã nasceu azul
And I ran to the guitar, in a lament, and the morning dawned blue
Como é bom poder tocar um instrumento
How good it is to be able to play an instrument
Lyrics and Translations Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Lyrics © Tratore, TERRA ENTERPRISES, INC., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Caetano Emmanuel Viana Teles Veloso
Did you like this lyrics translation?
tigresa — tigress
Tigresa literally means "tigress," the female form of a tiger. It's an evocative and somewhat exotic word that immediately conjures images of power, beauty, and danger.
In Caetano Veloso's song, the word is used to describe a captivating and complex woman. She is fierce and independent, with "black claws and honey-colored irises," embodying both allure and a hint of wildness. The song explores her past, her contradictions, and her dreams, all through the lens of this powerful feline metaphor.
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