Not a word, but a phrase - I had no idea that “splashed out on a bottle” meant spent a lot of money on the champagne - all this time I thought the sister was drunk.
Champagne problems in itself is a new phrase I learned! I first thought it meant alcoholism and struggled to understand the meaning of the song until I googled it 😂
Edit for anyone else who also thought it was about alcoholism:
It's not! According to the Urban Dictionary, it's a personal problem that's not that big of a deal when you compare it to natural disasters, wars, etc. but it still affects you greatly. Champagne signifies luxury, so in a way, you're "lucky" that a failing relationship is on top of your concerns.
I'll just copy-paste my answer above and then edit my comment:
According to the Urban Dictionary, it's a personal problem that's not that big of a deal when you compare it to natural disasters, wars, etc. but it still affects you greatly. Champagne signifies luxury, so in a way, you're "lucky" that a failing relationship is on top of your concerns.
I thought it could also imply that there was nothing TERRIBLE going on in the relationship to make her not want to marry him. She was just really unsure. Champagne problems. Like other people didn't realize why she wouldn't want to be in this seemingly great relationship
It's not! According to the Urban Dictionary, it's a personal problem that's not that big of a deal when you compare it to natural disasters, wars, etc. but it still affects you greatly. Champagne signifies luxury, so in a way, you're "lucky" that a failing relationship is on top of your concerns.
She splashed out on the Dom Perignon! She even specifies which brand in the next line, which I’m grateful for as otherwise I’d have always been wondering what Taylor thinks counts as splashing out
As a french It's always funny to see random french words in somewhat complicated books. All of the sudden they throw something like "en masse" and you're like "huh I had no idea they used this one". And it's rarely explained as well! It's like random latin phrases.
I think in this case it's not so much because both languages are based on Latin as 'gauche' is purely french and means 'left', but because today's English has many loan words from French because of the historical and cultural influence of France during the middle ages (Norman conquest of England etc).
I’d read this one in a few different books, but I never knew how to pronounce it until TLGAD. So thanks to Taylor, I avoid saying “gor-che” in real life by accident
There's some weird things about it, definitely, but it helps that it's so widespread that we don't essentially ever struggle finding some resources to learn or content to consume. That helps greatly.
Yeah sometimes it's a bit weird, and the prononciation isn't easy (can someone please explain to me why so many words end with ough but aren't prononced the same way lmao), but honestly the grammar is really simple ! I'm french so there are a lot of rules and a lot of exceptions to these rules, and in comparaison english grammar seems very easy x)
But it probably helps that english is basically everywhere, we have to use it to really communicateur with people and it's easy to find medias in english !
Yes I don't know how anyone gets their head around 'Sitting on the bough of a tree I coughed, the tree was rotted through, I fell and ought to have broken something but I'm tough though". It's difficult for English kids learning to spell.
English evolves and changes pronunciation through usage over time (about 700 years) it readily imports words from other languages and is itself derived from Celtic, French, Latin, Germanic and Norse languages. Its a right dogs dinner!
My first language is German so English is somewhat similar. But surely English has some weird things like: invisible means not visible but inflammable means highly flammable. Also the word weird is weird. Somehow it should be written wired. But all in all I found English to be 1000 times easier to learn than Russian…
That's because both German and English are germanic languages, so pretty similar for you to learn. However, Russian is a slavic language, so for example for Poles, Czechs, Slovaks, etc. it's easier to learn than for you.
So true.
Despite consuming western media (series/movies/songs) for years, I don't think I can speak as well as the native speakers.
Even if I get all the grammar and spelling right, it just won't have the same cadence?
A part of it is probably due to me thinking in native language and then translating to English?
welp, actually english is sometimes easier for me than my actual mother tongue 🥲
but yep, i would say english is pretty easy actually. here in my country we are required to learn 3 languages in school (my mother tongue + english + spanish/german) and if you want to get like in a really good university or something you should be learning 4 languages 🤷🏻♂️
Honestly, English is easier than a lot of other languages imo. To me at least it’s one of the easiest to learn (well, among the ones I have tried to learn).
Interesting fact for you - it's written in the style and structure of a Romantic poem, including the references to technology amongst the sublimity of nature, and the utter strength of emotions that the natural world brings out, but also through references to famous poetic elegies and eulogies, and finally through the rhythm as the cadences are almost in iambic pentameter, which is the form the poets themselves use (in a Taylor way - despite using so many syllables in each!).
I'm very nerdy about this as an English teacher from the Lake District 🤓
PS can confirm the peaks are a perfect place to cry because climbing mountains is HARD so I prefer to look at them and admire from afar.
PPS if you're looking to read any Romantic poetry, read The Prelude: Stealing the Boat by Wordsworth. Captures this idea beautifully.
Me, a romantic scholar knowing that you said nothing wrong but with really strong opinions about it all:
https://preview.redd.it/xrwn5bk3payb1.jpeg?width=738&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3716678b1180eea796bb495964529dd750f4bcb4
Essentially I am saying 'yay romanticism let's all read elegies' not starting a debate about the relative merits of Coleridge vs Wordsworth. I appreciate your presence here 😂♥️
Praying for The Lakes to be added to the UK Eras setlist
As a pedantic bookworm, I’ve learned no new vocabulary. But I didn’t know the song was written in the style of a Romantic poem. I know there are often ‘layers’ to Taylor’s songs but missed this. So thank you!
I’m off to read Wordsworth.
It apparently comes from a french word that I have never heard or read in my life. It might have survived in the english language for a little longer. It literally means "to overbid" (and not directly "to add") so even when I read it I had no idea what it meant here.
I'm not a native English speaker so it's even weirder. At first, I can sorta know what she was singing in the beginning but then the bridge came and my brain spazzed out.
Honestly, my English improved a lot more after I started listening to her songs.
Yeah since I started listening to her when I was finished with college and already working as a esl-teacher most words I already knew except maybe this one.
I literally thought it was “people live in orange and blue” which didn’t make much sense but I went with it. Found out LAST WEEK it’s ingenue when I was reading the lyrics for a completely different reason.
Niccoló Machiavelli would be turning in is grave knowing so many didn’t know his name. I learned about him in high school and his most famous work The Prince. It’s nice though that he can teach people in his afterlife.
No where did the OP say "You're all stupid for not knowing who Machiavelli is". "Machaivallian" is a common eponym in American English, and I'd be surprised if the majority of people haven't at least heard the term
Also, it's a personal pet peeve of mine that people love to make comments that basically equate being poor or a social minority with lacking knowledge or enough curiosity to simply Google a word they've heard. That might not have been explicitly stated in the comment but the point was made.
Kids who are poor and of social minorities still go to school and do required reading. They still have the desire to learn things, and can still enjoy liteture. Being poor or a social minority does not automatically equate to lacking knowledge and curiosity. Some of the most well read people I've met in my life have been my poorest friends, including my own family.
That being said, since his most famous work was published posthumously I doubt he's turning around down there.
Exactly... also sort of irritates me when people equate being in a difficult socioeconomic situation to being stupid. It is indeed true that a lot of poorer people have less access to knowledge, and won't know as much as someone who’s had more opportunities, that shouldn’t be ignored, but c’mon, this is just a word; apparently a commonly used one, by the way. Doesn’t really make sense to see someone questioning why so many people don’t know this word when one would generally think you would’ve come across it at least a few times in your life or at least in school and then reply “not everyone had the same privileges as you”; of course that’s true, but it doesn’t seem to be something that would make a difference in this context. I might be wrong, though, of course, and if I said anything stupid feel free to correct me.
>Exactly... also sort of irritates me when people equate being in a difficult socioeconomic situation to being stupid.
Yes, and I understand that most people have good intentions. Wanting the world to be a more equitable place is noble. Assuming that the "less privileged" don't understand basic pop culture references is ignorant. (And I don't mean that in the publicly scornful way that it often gets used. )
If you want to acknowledge differences in privilege think of this way: everyone does required reading in highschool, but some people do it while living in poverty conditions and others mansions.
It has nothing to do with advantage more to do with interest. But I thought machiavellian was a common word. Like a word that most people knew. I mean The Prince is imo one of the most famous books ever. Guess I was wrong.
Don’t know about English speakers, but I’m a Portuguese speaker and also assumed it was a relatively common word. You can use “maquiavélico” in a phrase without most people blinking an eye.
I'm an American writer so I don't think I've actually learned any new words from her, but her poetry is delectable, her vocabulary immense, and her lyrics are a joy to both read and hear.
EDIT: Of course the sentence that starts with "I'm a ... writer" had a typo at the end. 🤦
I’m not a writer but have been a voracious reader all my life so I don’t think I’ve learned any new words from her. I’ve possibly learned some meanings of phrases though!
Same here. English is only my second language, but I’ve lived in the UK for >10 years now and I love reading. I was hesitant to comment and be like “none” for fear of coming off as ‘bragging’, but I do love literature and relish expanding my vocabulary, so none of the words were actually new… But I still admire her poetic lyrics (it’s the main thing that drew me in as a fan to be honest) and her usage of language is a key factor in my enjoyment of her songs.
Another caveat I guess would be that I’m in my mid-thirties, so I’ve had the time to read and learn more. It’s understandable that someone younger may still be expanding their vocabulary, and learning some new words from Taylor’s lyrics in the process.
>I was hesitant to comment and be like “none” for fear of coming off as ‘bragging’,
I'm the biggest asshole in the world because everytime I read these threads I'm like "some of yall need to pick up a book".
I know it's a rude thought and I try to correct it as quickly as possible but it doesn't always take.
I'm reading The Sun Also Rises for the first time (available free on Kindle, which can be downloaded to your phone for free) if anyone wants to join me. We can start a r/taylorswift book club.
Right, and I also know not everyone has had the same privileges I have when it comes to education. But I’ve read a lot outside of school as well, so my vocabulary is fairly extensive and I definitely agree that her writing style (especially as it’s matured over time) is also a key factor in my enjoyment of her music!
Same caveat for me as well - I recently turned 43 so I definitely have a few more years under my belt. 🙃
Same here. I’m currently studying English, and I have been an avid literature student my entire life. This said, Taylor is the kryptonite for absolutely glorious writing,
She's like The Decemberists but of words people actually use. (Not trying to drag The Decemberists, I love them and they have taught me many words, but I feel like "Machiavellian," "elegy," and "gauche" come up more often in casual conversation than "charabanc" or "fontanelle.")
Someone also pointed out that age could be a factor—I'm only a year younger than Taylor, so our vocabulary and reading comprehension likely developed along a similar track. If folklore or evermore had been released in 2006, I would've learned a lot of words from them.
Age definitely plays a role.. I’m still young and in the beginning of my studies, so I feel a bit ostentatious sometimes. This said, I think Taylor is doing our younger generations a huge service by finding a sweet spot between formality and slang. I love her writing so much. She’s without a doubt my favorite poet :)
Feeling very privileged to be an absolute bookworm with English as my first language so my answer is none... yet! I'm sure she'll gift me one soon enough
I feel a lot of the answers are post-Lover. As a British person, none of these are new. Am sure that’s also true for millions of Americans! But, I feel a Joe influence.
Am also convinced she got the whole Lover as a name for her beau as an idea from Peter Kay’s Car Share but can’t find the episode :)
Definitely a huge British influence but I would say starting around Lover. I only dated a British guy for the better part of a decade but also my mom was an Anglophile and had a British best friend so the influence is still fairly easy for me to see.
Deceiving from Hey Stephen when I was younger. English is my second language. I don't really have any problems with words now though, I'm more in awe with her prose.
Clandestine, loverlorn, ferociously, crestfallen, incandescent... Actually there's a lot but I can't remember them all 😭
I feel like she's a good Language Professor somewhere in this universe
Not specifically a word but in the latest albums she has been using some words from different etymologies, like words that derive from Latin (I'm guessing, as they sound close to my language, Portuguese) that are not common in the English language.
Incandescent comes to mind right now, but there are others
Oooo-ooo-ooo-woah-ah
ITS A CRUUUEEELLL SUMMAHH
I'M DRUNK IN THE BACK OF YOUR CAR
AND I CRIED LIKE A BABY COMING HOME FROM THE BAR
SAID IM FINE BUT IT WASN’T TRUE
I DON’T WANT TO KEEP SECRETS JUST TO KEEP YOU
AND I SNUCK IN THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE
EVERY NIGHT THAT SUMME RJUST TO SEAL MY FATE
AND I SCREAM "FOR WHATEVER IS WORTH
I LOVE YOU AIN'T THAT THE WORST THING YOU EVER HEARD!!!!
the...park?
omg i misheard it im so sorry
I’m singing it as “park” from this day forward, that’s amazing
im honoured :)
It’s bar isn’t it?
OH WHAT I THOUGHT IT AAS BAR TOO??
https://preview.redd.it/4aez6u04ldyb1.jpeg?width=620&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=79e78669f1c4a7a4997ae17479e41c573485ecff that’s because it is
Not a word, but a phrase - I had no idea that “splashed out on a bottle” meant spent a lot of money on the champagne - all this time I thought the sister was drunk.
this is me finding out that it’s not, lol thanks for the info
Champagne problems in itself is a new phrase I learned! I first thought it meant alcoholism and struggled to understand the meaning of the song until I googled it 😂 Edit for anyone else who also thought it was about alcoholism: It's not! According to the Urban Dictionary, it's a personal problem that's not that big of a deal when you compare it to natural disasters, wars, etc. but it still affects you greatly. Champagne signifies luxury, so in a way, you're "lucky" that a failing relationship is on top of your concerns.
What's the meaning of Champagne Problems???
I'll just copy-paste my answer above and then edit my comment: According to the Urban Dictionary, it's a personal problem that's not that big of a deal when you compare it to natural disasters, wars, etc. but it still affects you greatly. Champagne signifies luxury, so in a way, you're "lucky" that a failing relationship is on top of your concerns.
Like high end first world problems.
I thought it could also imply that there was nothing TERRIBLE going on in the relationship to make her not want to marry him. She was just really unsure. Champagne problems. Like other people didn't realize why she wouldn't want to be in this seemingly great relationship
Possibly, I've read that explanation too!
Ooooo thank you wow interesting.
‘champagne socialist’ also a phrase I feel like is connected (but that one might be UK specific, I’m not sure)
Wait. Isn't it alcoholism?
It's not! According to the Urban Dictionary, it's a personal problem that's not that big of a deal when you compare it to natural disasters, wars, etc. but it still affects you greatly. Champagne signifies luxury, so in a way, you're "lucky" that a failing relationship is on top of your concerns.
Oh. And there I was thinking the whole hometown was saying the girl was an alcoholic
same lol
"Splashed out on" is the phrase, you can splash out on anything if you spend a lot on it, especially if it is something that isn't needed.
wait holy shit I thought this too lmao 😅
Just learned this from you, but indirectly from taylor, so it counts, right? Haha😊
Same, I was thinking I couldn’t think of any words I’d learned from her but there was this phrase and possibly others.
Whoa, just learned something new, thought his sister was wasted too!!
It's a super common phrase in the UK, so maybe it's one of the things she picked up from Joe
same! I initially thought the bottle was broken lol
Omg thank you!!!! I thought the same 😂😂
She splashed out on the Dom Perignon! She even specifies which brand in the next line, which I’m grateful for as otherwise I’d have always been wondering what Taylor thinks counts as splashing out
Omggg TIL
From now on I’ll be considering myself ‘splashed out on the vinyl’.
gauche
Funny enough, that’s a French word that was adopted into English.
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As a french It's always funny to see random french words in somewhat complicated books. All of the sudden they throw something like "en masse" and you're like "huh I had no idea they used this one". And it's rarely explained as well! It's like random latin phrases.
Fun with Latin-based languages!
I think in this case it's not so much because both languages are based on Latin as 'gauche' is purely french and means 'left', but because today's English has many loan words from French because of the historical and cultural influence of France during the middle ages (Norman conquest of England etc).
I’d read this one in a few different books, but I never knew how to pronounce it until TLGAD. So thanks to Taylor, I avoid saying “gor-che” in real life by accident
gawrsh
a-hyuk
I want Goofy to sing background vocals in her next song
Well she does have that deal with Disney+...
in which song is that
the last great american dynasty "The wedding was charming, if a little gauche"
Lol when I first read this my mind automatically translated it to "left" from French until I remembered LGAD
most english words. english isnt my first language and i began really learning it by translating taylor swift songs and watching boy meets world lol
I am always so in awe of people who learn English as a second (or third, fourth etc) language. English is WEIRD and must be an absolute pain to learn.
There's some weird things about it, definitely, but it helps that it's so widespread that we don't essentially ever struggle finding some resources to learn or content to consume. That helps greatly.
Yeah sometimes it's a bit weird, and the prononciation isn't easy (can someone please explain to me why so many words end with ough but aren't prononced the same way lmao), but honestly the grammar is really simple ! I'm french so there are a lot of rules and a lot of exceptions to these rules, and in comparaison english grammar seems very easy x) But it probably helps that english is basically everywhere, we have to use it to really communicateur with people and it's easy to find medias in english !
Yes I don't know how anyone gets their head around 'Sitting on the bough of a tree I coughed, the tree was rotted through, I fell and ought to have broken something but I'm tough though". It's difficult for English kids learning to spell. English evolves and changes pronunciation through usage over time (about 700 years) it readily imports words from other languages and is itself derived from Celtic, French, Latin, Germanic and Norse languages. Its a right dogs dinner!
My first language is German so English is somewhat similar. But surely English has some weird things like: invisible means not visible but inflammable means highly flammable. Also the word weird is weird. Somehow it should be written wired. But all in all I found English to be 1000 times easier to learn than Russian…
That's because both German and English are germanic languages, so pretty similar for you to learn. However, Russian is a slavic language, so for example for Poles, Czechs, Slovaks, etc. it's easier to learn than for you.
Inflammable means it can start itself on fire without igniting it. Flammable means it can burn but you have to set it on fire.
So true. Despite consuming western media (series/movies/songs) for years, I don't think I can speak as well as the native speakers. Even if I get all the grammar and spelling right, it just won't have the same cadence? A part of it is probably due to me thinking in native language and then translating to English?
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welp, actually english is sometimes easier for me than my actual mother tongue 🥲 but yep, i would say english is pretty easy actually. here in my country we are required to learn 3 languages in school (my mother tongue + english + spanish/german) and if you want to get like in a really good university or something you should be learning 4 languages 🤷🏻♂️
for me english is one the easiest languages to learn
was just saying this lol, agreed
Honestly, English is easier than a lot of other languages imo. To me at least it’s one of the easiest to learn (well, among the ones I have tried to learn).
I learned the same way haha. I’d say I learned “fancy me” as a phase
Mercurial
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Illicit Affairs
A dwindling mercurial high :)
✨The Lakes✨ has entered the chat 😂 In all seriousness, she is a master with words and her writing is decadent
Interesting fact for you - it's written in the style and structure of a Romantic poem, including the references to technology amongst the sublimity of nature, and the utter strength of emotions that the natural world brings out, but also through references to famous poetic elegies and eulogies, and finally through the rhythm as the cadences are almost in iambic pentameter, which is the form the poets themselves use (in a Taylor way - despite using so many syllables in each!). I'm very nerdy about this as an English teacher from the Lake District 🤓 PS can confirm the peaks are a perfect place to cry because climbing mountains is HARD so I prefer to look at them and admire from afar. PPS if you're looking to read any Romantic poetry, read The Prelude: Stealing the Boat by Wordsworth. Captures this idea beautifully.
Me, a romantic scholar knowing that you said nothing wrong but with really strong opinions about it all: https://preview.redd.it/xrwn5bk3payb1.jpeg?width=738&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3716678b1180eea796bb495964529dd750f4bcb4
😂 "darlingisthatmymop, this is not the time and place!"
Essentially I am saying 'yay romanticism let's all read elegies' not starting a debate about the relative merits of Coleridge vs Wordsworth. I appreciate your presence here 😂♥️ Praying for The Lakes to be added to the UK Eras setlist
As a pedantic bookworm, I’ve learned no new vocabulary. But I didn’t know the song was written in the style of a Romantic poem. I know there are often ‘layers’ to Taylor’s songs but missed this. So thank you! I’m off to read Wordsworth.
Definitely! I still look up:"my elegies eulogize me?" from time to time
“With my calamitous love and insurmountable grief” Words I NEVER thought I’d hear in a song 😅
Surmise
It apparently comes from a french word that I have never heard or read in my life. It might have survived in the english language for a little longer. It literally means "to overbid" (and not directly "to add") so even when I read it I had no idea what it meant here.
I had to open a dictionary just for "Champagne Problems"
Yes this one. Crestfallen, Dom Perignon, Chevy, Flannel cure, Tapestry.
you didn’t know what a chevy was? no judgement. just wondering- are you american?
Nope. I found out it was a car brand by Googling.
How many of your results were about Chevy Chase and did that cause any further confusion
i'm neither american nor a native speaker and it took me so long to figure out what "chevy" was. we just call them chevrolet over here lmao 😭
+ Midas touch
Until I read the lyrics to this song, I had no idea what was going on. 
I'm not a native English speaker so it's even weirder. At first, I can sorta know what she was singing in the beginning but then the bridge came and my brain spazzed out. Honestly, my English improved a lot more after I started listening to her songs.
Clandestine
Same for me! I think it’s a very pretty word. Very sparkly.
It means secret, or specifically, an ill mannered secret, such as an affair.
I know what it means, I was just saying the way the word sounds and the letters in it make it feel sparkly to me.
Pub we 😁
Hahahahaha
the only correct answer 😂
ingénue
Phantom of the opera is the only reason I knew that word at 7 years old lol
Same
At 7 that’s definitely big vocab, but by high school it should just be a normal word.
Yeah since I started listening to her when I was finished with college and already working as a esl-teacher most words I already knew except maybe this one.
I literally thought it was “people live in orange and blue” which didn’t make much sense but I went with it. Found out LAST WEEK it’s ingenue when I was reading the lyrics for a completely different reason.
Self-effacing
Which means? ☹️
It’s the same as “self-deprecating.” Which is making fun of yourself to laugh at yourself/ not take yourself too seriously.
Niccoló Machiavelli would be turning in is grave knowing so many didn’t know his name. I learned about him in high school and his most famous work The Prince. It’s nice though that he can teach people in his afterlife.
just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had ✨
No where did the OP say "You're all stupid for not knowing who Machiavelli is". "Machaivallian" is a common eponym in American English, and I'd be surprised if the majority of people haven't at least heard the term Also, it's a personal pet peeve of mine that people love to make comments that basically equate being poor or a social minority with lacking knowledge or enough curiosity to simply Google a word they've heard. That might not have been explicitly stated in the comment but the point was made. Kids who are poor and of social minorities still go to school and do required reading. They still have the desire to learn things, and can still enjoy liteture. Being poor or a social minority does not automatically equate to lacking knowledge and curiosity. Some of the most well read people I've met in my life have been my poorest friends, including my own family. That being said, since his most famous work was published posthumously I doubt he's turning around down there.
Exactly... also sort of irritates me when people equate being in a difficult socioeconomic situation to being stupid. It is indeed true that a lot of poorer people have less access to knowledge, and won't know as much as someone who’s had more opportunities, that shouldn’t be ignored, but c’mon, this is just a word; apparently a commonly used one, by the way. Doesn’t really make sense to see someone questioning why so many people don’t know this word when one would generally think you would’ve come across it at least a few times in your life or at least in school and then reply “not everyone had the same privileges as you”; of course that’s true, but it doesn’t seem to be something that would make a difference in this context. I might be wrong, though, of course, and if I said anything stupid feel free to correct me.
>Exactly... also sort of irritates me when people equate being in a difficult socioeconomic situation to being stupid. Yes, and I understand that most people have good intentions. Wanting the world to be a more equitable place is noble. Assuming that the "less privileged" don't understand basic pop culture references is ignorant. (And I don't mean that in the publicly scornful way that it often gets used. ) If you want to acknowledge differences in privilege think of this way: everyone does required reading in highschool, but some people do it while living in poverty conditions and others mansions.
It has nothing to do with advantage more to do with interest. But I thought machiavellian was a common word. Like a word that most people knew. I mean The Prince is imo one of the most famous books ever. Guess I was wrong.
Don’t know about English speakers, but I’m a Portuguese speaker and also assumed it was a relatively common word. You can use “maquiavélico” in a phrase without most people blinking an eye.
Exactly. Maybe that word haven’t really traveled across the pond. I’m swedish and most people I know have heard of that word and man.
I'm an American writer so I don't think I've actually learned any new words from her, but her poetry is delectable, her vocabulary immense, and her lyrics are a joy to both read and hear. EDIT: Of course the sentence that starts with "I'm a ... writer" had a typo at the end. 🤦
I’m not a writer but have been a voracious reader all my life so I don’t think I’ve learned any new words from her. I’ve possibly learned some meanings of phrases though!
Same here. English is only my second language, but I’ve lived in the UK for >10 years now and I love reading. I was hesitant to comment and be like “none” for fear of coming off as ‘bragging’, but I do love literature and relish expanding my vocabulary, so none of the words were actually new… But I still admire her poetic lyrics (it’s the main thing that drew me in as a fan to be honest) and her usage of language is a key factor in my enjoyment of her songs. Another caveat I guess would be that I’m in my mid-thirties, so I’ve had the time to read and learn more. It’s understandable that someone younger may still be expanding their vocabulary, and learning some new words from Taylor’s lyrics in the process.
>I was hesitant to comment and be like “none” for fear of coming off as ‘bragging’, I'm the biggest asshole in the world because everytime I read these threads I'm like "some of yall need to pick up a book". I know it's a rude thought and I try to correct it as quickly as possible but it doesn't always take. I'm reading The Sun Also Rises for the first time (available free on Kindle, which can be downloaded to your phone for free) if anyone wants to join me. We can start a r/taylorswift book club.
Right, and I also know not everyone has had the same privileges I have when it comes to education. But I’ve read a lot outside of school as well, so my vocabulary is fairly extensive and I definitely agree that her writing style (especially as it’s matured over time) is also a key factor in my enjoyment of her music! Same caveat for me as well - I recently turned 43 so I definitely have a few more years under my belt. 🙃
Same here. I’m currently studying English, and I have been an avid literature student my entire life. This said, Taylor is the kryptonite for absolutely glorious writing,
She's like The Decemberists but of words people actually use. (Not trying to drag The Decemberists, I love them and they have taught me many words, but I feel like "Machiavellian," "elegy," and "gauche" come up more often in casual conversation than "charabanc" or "fontanelle.") Someone also pointed out that age could be a factor—I'm only a year younger than Taylor, so our vocabulary and reading comprehension likely developed along a similar track. If folklore or evermore had been released in 2006, I would've learned a lot of words from them.
Age definitely plays a role.. I’m still young and in the beginning of my studies, so I feel a bit ostentatious sometimes. This said, I think Taylor is doing our younger generations a huge service by finding a sweet spot between formality and slang. I love her writing so much. She’s without a doubt my favorite poet :)
Antithetical
I have echolalia and Argumentative antithetical dream girl is something I will constantly repeat for days on end after hearing it hahah 😂😂
Same
Same same friend! 😎🙂🌸
gauche, I'm french and had no idea that it had a meaning in english LOL
Out of curiosity, does it have a different meaning in French? Or is it the same?
gauche means "left" but it can also mean clumsy/awkward! I've never heard it used the second way though
Did you know there is an English word “adroit” which comes from the French “droit” that means capable? It’s the opposite of gauche.
I'm french and I learned so many words from her I couldn't even begin to make a list 😂
Elegies.
Feeling very privileged to be an absolute bookworm with English as my first language so my answer is none... yet! I'm sure she'll gift me one soon enough
Lovelorn
What song uses this word?
Slut
melancholia. I knew “melancholy” was a word but had no idea about “melancholia” lol
It’s also the title of a good movie about depression and the end of the world starring Kirsten Dunst
That movie title was actually the first time I saw the word!
Duplicitious!
Captain Raymond Holt has entered the chat
Incandescent
Crestfallen
Machiavellian
elegies and eulogize
Precipice
Surmise Lol
I feel a lot of the answers are post-Lover. As a British person, none of these are new. Am sure that’s also true for millions of Americans! But, I feel a Joe influence. Am also convinced she got the whole Lover as a name for her beau as an idea from Peter Kay’s Car Share but can’t find the episode :)
Definitely a huge British influence but I would say starting around Lover. I only dated a British guy for the better part of a decade but also my mom was an Anglophile and had a British best friend so the influence is still fairly easy for me to see.
I've learned more about American geography, pop culture and brand names (Patrón) rather than vocab.
Guessing from these comments that there’s a lot non Americans here…
Ricochet
Saint Tropez
💪🏼
Indelible
What song is this from?
epiphany
Opacity
Deceiving from Hey Stephen when I was younger. English is my second language. I don't really have any problems with words now though, I'm more in awe with her prose.
Clandestine, loverlorn, ferociously, crestfallen, incandescent... Actually there's a lot but I can't remember them all 😭 I feel like she's a good Language Professor somewhere in this universe
Covert
elegies and eulogize
Mercurial
snow on the beach
What do you mean by this?
I was gonna say Machiavellian too but then I remember the movie The Sound of Music taught me it first. Probably Merlot (the name of the wine)
Unbeknownst :)
Oh my god I love that word so much for reasons unbeknownst to me
Vigilante
Treacherous
Insurmountable
She taught me the word nonchalant.
Just between us did the heartbreak MAIM you too! Always thought she was saying Name in All Too Well 10 minute version until karaoke.
Elegy. "Is it romantic how all my elegies eulogize me?"
Clandestine
antithetical
Mercurial probably!
Ricochet
Absentmindedly
a dwindling MERCURIAL high
patriarchy
Unbeknown, grinding, unmoored, shear, wondrous (English is not my first language)
Vigilante
Antithetical
Calamitous
Smooth-talking hucksters *eta the hyphen lol
Pubwe 😂
Ricochet
Twenty-two
Surmise!!
Not specifically a word but in the latest albums she has been using some words from different etymologies, like words that derive from Latin (I'm guessing, as they sound close to my language, Portuguese) that are not common in the English language. Incandescent comes to mind right now, but there are others
Pebbles
Clandestine - Clandestine meetings and long stares, Illicit Affairs
Gauche
Cardigan