Learn Spanish with: Livin' la Vida Loca

by Ricky Martin

She arrives as la reina de la noche, la diosa del vudú and ends up ella es tu final. Object pronouns pile up around her — te besa y te desnuda, te dejas arrastrar — which is most of the Spanish a learner takes away from it.

On this page: Lyrics and translations · Grammar notes · Word study

Interactive Subtitles & Translation

La reina de la noche, la diosa del vudú.

Literal: The queen of-the night, the goddess of-the voodoo.

English: The queen of the night, the goddess of voodoo.

Turkish: Gecenin kraliçesi, vudunun tanrıçası.

Yo no podré salvarme, podrás salvarte tú.

Literal: I no will-be-able-to save-myself, will-be-able-to save-yourself you.

English: I will not be able to save myself, you will be able to save yourself.

Turkish: Ben kurtulamayacağım, sen kurtulabilirsin.

La tela de la araña, la uña del dragón.

Literal: The web of-the spider, the claw of-the dragon.

English: The web of the spider, the claw of the dragon.

Turkish: Örümceğin ağı, ejderhanın tırnağı.

Te lleva a los infiernos, ella es tu adicción.

Literal: You takes to the hells, she is your addiction.

English: She takes you to the hells, she is your addiction.

Turkish: Seni cehenneme götürür, o senin bağımlılığın.

Te besa y te desnuda con su baile demencial.

Literal: You kisses and you undresses with her dance frenzied.

English: She kisses you and undresses you with her frantic dance.

Turkish: Seni öper ve çılgınca dansıyla soyar.

Cierras los ojitos y te dejas arrastrar.

Literal: You-close the little-eyes and yourself let be-dragged.

English: You close your little eyes and let yourself be dragged.

Turkish: Küçük gözlerini kapatırsın ve kendini sürükletirsin.

Tú te dejas arrastrar.

Literal: You yourself let be-dragged.

English: You let yourself be dragged.

Turkish: Sen kendini sürükletirsin.

Ella ¿qué será? ¡Vive la vida loca!

Literal: She what will-be? Live the life crazy!

English: What will she be? Live the crazy life!

Turkish: O ne olacak? Çılgın hayatı yaşa!

Y te dolerá si de verdad te toca.

Literal: And you will-hurt if truly you touches.

English: And it will hurt you if she truly touches you.

Turkish: Ve sana gerçekten dokunursa canın yanacak.

Ella es tu final, ¡vive la vida loca!

Literal: She is your end, live the life crazy!

English: She is your end, live the crazy life!

Turkish: O senin sonun, çılgın hayatı yaşa!

Ella te dirá, ¡vive la vida loca!

Literal: She you will-tell, live the life crazy!

English: She will tell you, live the crazy life!

Turkish: O sana söyleyecek, çılgın hayatı yaşa!

¡Vive la vida loca!

Literal: Live the life crazy!

English: Live the crazy life!

Turkish: Çılgın hayatı yaşa!

¡Siempre vive la vida loca!

Literal: Always live the life crazy!

English: Always live the crazy life!

Turkish: Her zaman çılgın hayatı yaşa!

Se fue a New York City.

Literal: Herself went to New York City.

English: She went to New York City.

Turkish: New York Şehri'ne gitti.

A la torre de un hotel.

Literal: To the tower of a hotel.

English: To the tower of a hotel.

Turkish: Bir otelin kulesine.

Te ha robado la cartera.

Literal: (To) you has stolen the wallet.

English: He/She has stolen your wallet.

Turkish: Senden cüzdanını çalmış.

Se ha llevado hasta tu piel.

Literal: (Himself/Herself) has taken away even your skin.

English: He/She has taken even your skin.

Turkish: Tenini bile götürmüş.

Por eso no bebía de tu copa de licor.

Literal: For that not was drinking from your glass of liquor.

English: That's why he/she did not drink from your liquor glass.

Turkish: Bu yüzden likör kadehinden içmiyordu.

Por eso te besaba con narcótico sabor.

Literal: For that (to) you was kissing with narcotic flavor.

English: That's why he/she used to kiss you with narcotic flavor.

Turkish: Bu yüzden seni narkotik bir tatla öpüyordu.

Es el beso de calor.

Literal: Is the kiss of heat.

English: It is the kiss of heat.

Turkish: Bu, sıcaklık öpücüğüdür.

Ella ¿qué será? ¡Vive la vida loca!

Literal: She what will-be? Live the life crazy!

English: What will she be? Live the crazy life!

Turkish: O ne olacak? Çılgın hayatı yaşa!

Y te dolerá si de verdad te toca.

Literal: And you will-hurt if truly you touches.

English: And it will hurt you if she truly touches you.

Turkish: Ve sana gerçekten dokunursa canın yanacak.

Ella es tu final, ¡vive la vida loca!

Literal: She is your end, live the life crazy!

English: She is your end, live the crazy life!

Turkish: O senin sonun, çılgın hayatı yaşa!

Ella te dirá, ¡vive la vida loca!

Literal: She you will-tell, live the life crazy!

English: She will tell you, live the crazy life!

Turkish: O sana söyleyecek, çılgın hayatı yaşa!

¡Vive la vida loca!

Literal: Live the life crazy!

English: Live the crazy life!

Turkish: Çılgın hayatı yaşa!

¡Vive la vida loca!

Literal: Live the life crazy!

English: Live the crazy life!

Turkish: Çılgın hayatı yaşa!

Te besa y te desnuda con su baile demencial.

Literal: You kisses and you undresses with her dance frenzied.

English: She kisses you and undresses you with her frantic dance.

Turkish: Seni öper ve çılgınca dansıyla soyar.

Cierras los ojitos y te dejas arrastrar.

Literal: You-close the little-eyes and yourself let be-dragged.

English: You close your little eyes and let yourself be dragged.

Turkish: Küçük gözlerini kapatırsın ve kendini sürükletirsin.

Tú te dejas arrastrar.

Literal: You yourself let be-dragged.

English: You let yourself be dragged.

Turkish: Sen kendini sürükletirsin.

Ella ¿qué será? ¡Vive la vida loca!

Literal: She what will-be? Live the life crazy!

English: What will she be? Live the crazy life!

Turkish: O ne olacak? Çılgın hayatı yaşa!

Y te dolerá si de verdad te toca.

Literal: And you will-hurt if truly you touches.

English: And it will hurt you if she truly touches you.

Turkish: Ve sana gerçekten dokunursa canın yanacak.

Ella es tu final, ¡vive la vida loca!

Literal: She is your end, live the life crazy!

English: She is your end, live the crazy life!

Turkish: O senin sonun, çılgın hayatı yaşa!

Ella te dirá, ¡vive la vida loca!

Literal: She you will-tell, live the life crazy!

English: She will tell you, live the crazy life!

Turkish: O sana söyleyecek, çılgın hayatı yaşa!

¡Vive la vida loca!

Literal: Live the life crazy!

English: Live the crazy life!

Turkish: Çılgın hayatı yaşa!

¡Vive la vida loca!

Literal: Live the life crazy!

English: Live the crazy life!

Turkish: Çılgın hayatı yaşa!

¡A sacar la cara, la cara, la cara, la vida loca!

Literal: To take out the face, the face, the face, the crazy life!

English: To show the face, the face, the face, the crazy life!

Turkish: Haydi yüzünü göster, yüzünü, yüzünü, çılgın hayat!

Grammar notes, line by line

What each line is doing grammatically: the case and person endings it uses, the tense or mood of its verb, and the fixed expressions a dictionary will not resolve word by word. Lines that repeat in the song are listed once.

La reina de la noche, la diosa del vudú.

The queen of the night, the goddess of voodoo.

  • 'Del' and 'de la' are contractions of 'de' + 'el/la'.

Yo no podré salvarme, podrás salvarte tú.

I will not be able to save myself, you will be able to save yourself.

  • Verbs with reflexive suffixes (-me, -te) emphasize personal impact.

Te lleva a los infiernos, ella es tu adicción.

She takes you to the hells, she is your addiction.

  • 'Los infiernos' uses the plural to emphasize intensity.

Te besa y te desnuda con su baile demencial.

She kisses you and undresses you with her frantic dance.

  • Object pronouns 'te' precede the verb.

Cierras los ojitos y te dejas arrastrar.

You close your little eyes and let yourself be dragged.

  • Diminutive '-itos' expresses affection or triviality.

Ella ¿qué será? ¡Vive la vida loca!

What will she be? Live the crazy life!

  • Future tense used here for probability or conjecture.

Y te dolerá si de verdad te toca.

And it will hurt you if she truly touches you.

  • 'Si' introduces a conditional clause.

Ella te dirá, ¡vive la vida loca!

She will tell you, live the crazy life!

  • Imperative 'vive' functions as a central, recurring thematic call to action.

¡Siempre vive la vida loca!

Always live the crazy life!

  • Adverb 'siempre' (always) intensifies the imperative urgency of the phrase.

Se fue a New York City.

She went to New York City.

  • Reflexive 'se' used with 'ir' creates 'irse', meaning 'to leave' or 'to go away'.

Te ha robado la cartera.

He/She has stolen your wallet.

  • The dative 'te' specifies the person affected by the theft.

Se ha llevado hasta tu piel.

He/She has taken even your skin.

  • 'Hasta' (even/up to) emphasizes the extreme extent of the theft.

Por eso no bebía de tu copa de licor.

That's why he/she did not drink from your liquor glass.

  • Imperfect tense 'bebía' emphasizes habitual action in the past.

Por eso te besaba con narcótico sabor.

That's why he/she used to kiss you with narcotic flavor.

  • Imperfect tense 'besaba' conveys a repeated, haunting past action.

¡A sacar la cara, la cara, la cara, la vida loca!

To show the face, the face, the face, the crazy life!

  • The 'A + infinitive' structure is a common imperative or exhortative construction in Spanish.
  • 'Sacar la cara' is a colloquial idiom meaning to stand up for something/someone.

Word study: 83 words with roots and origins

Every distinct word in the song, in the order it is first sung, with the dictionary form to look up, the endings on it, what it means here, and where the word came from. Words that recur are listed once.

WordDictionary formGrammarMeaningOrigin
La el art. f. sg. The From Latin ille, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
reina reina n. f. sg. queen From Latin regina, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
de de prep. of From Old Spanish de.Wiktionary
noche noche n. f. sg. night From Old Spanish noche.Wiktionary
diosa dios n. f. sg. goddess From Latin deus, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
del de prep. + art. m. sg. of the From Old Spanish de.Wiktionary
vudú vudú n. m. sg. voodoo From Louisiana Creole voudou.Wiktionary
Yo yo pron. pers. I From Late Latin eo, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
no no adv. not From Latin non, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
podré poder v., 1st pers. sg. fut. ind. (futuro de indicativo) I will be able From Vulgar Latin posso.Wiktionary
salvarme salvar v. inf. + pron. reflex. save myself From Latin salvare, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
podrás poder v., 2nd pers. sg. fut. ind. (futuro de indicativo) you will be able From Vulgar Latin posso.Wiktionary
salvarte salvar v. inf. + pron. reflex. save yourself From Latin salvare, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
pron. pers. you From Latin , from Proto-Italic *, from Proto-Indo-European *túh₂.Wiktionary
tela tela n. f. sg. web/fabric From Latin tela, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
araña araña n. f. sg. spider From Latin aranea, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
uña uña n. f. sg. claw/nail From Vulgar Latin *ungla, from Latin ungula.Wiktionary
dragón dragón n. m. sg. dragon From Latin draco, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
Te pron. pers. you (obj) From Latin , from Proto-Italic *, from Proto-Indo-European *túh₂.Wiktionary
lleva llevar v., 3rd pers. sg. pres. ind. (presente de indicativo) takes From Latin levāre, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
a a prep. to From Latin ad.Wiktionary
los el art. m. pl. the From Latin ille, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
infiernos infierno n. m. pl. hells From Latin infernum, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
ella él pron. pers. she From Latin ille.Wiktionary
es ser v., 3rd pers. sg. pres. ind. (presente de indicativo) is From Latin sum.Wiktionary
tu poss. adj. your From Latin 'tuus'.
adicción adicción n. f. sg. addiction From Latin addictio.Wiktionary
besa besar v., 3rd pers. sg. pres. ind. (presente de indicativo) kisses From Latin basiare, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
y y conj. and From Old Spanish é.Wiktionary
desnuda desnudar v., 3rd pers. sg. pres. ind. (presente de indicativo) undresses From Latin disnūdāre.Wiktionary
con con prep. with From Latin cum ('with'), from Proto-Italic *kom, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm ('next to, at, with, along'), probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
su su poss. adj. her From Old Spanish su.Wiktionary
baile baile n. m. sg. dance From Old Occitan balar.Wiktionary
demencial demencial adj. frantic/demented Formed within Spanish from demencia + -al.Wiktionary
Cierras cerrar v., 2nd pers. sg. pres. ind. (presente de indicativo) you close From Vulgar Latin serrare, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
ojitos ojo n. m. pl. dimin. little eyes From Old Spanish ojo.Wiktionary
te pron. reflex. yourself From Latin , from Proto-Italic *, from Proto-Indo-European *túh₂.Wiktionary
dejas dejar v., 2nd pers. sg. pres. ind. (presente de indicativo) let From Old Spanish dexar.Wiktionary
arrastrar arrastrar v. inf. be dragged Formed within Spanish from a- + rastrar.Wiktionary
qué qué pron. interrog. what From Latin quid, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
será ser v., 3rd pers. sg. fut. ind. (futuro de indicativo) will be From Latin sum.Wiktionary
Vive vivir v., 2nd pers. sg. imperative (imperativo) live From Old Spanish bevir.Wiktionary
vida vida n. f. sg. life From Latin vīta, from Proto-Italic *gʷītā, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
loca loco adj. f. sg. crazy From Old Spanish loco.Wiktionary
dolerá doler v., 3rd pers. sg. fut. ind. (futuro de indicativo) will hurt From Old Spanish doler, from Latin doleo, from Proto-Italic *doleō ('hurt, cause pain').Wiktionary
si si conj. if From Latin si, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
verdad verdad n. f. sg. truth/truly From Latin veritas.Wiktionary
toca tocar v., 3rd pers. sg. pres. ind. (presente de indicativo) touches From Vulgar Latin *tuccō.Wiktionary
final final n. m. sg. end From Latin fīnālis.Wiktionary
Ella él pron. 3rd pers. sg. f. she From Latin ille.Wiktionary
te pron. 2nd pers. sg. you From Latin , from Proto-Italic *, from Proto-Indo-European *túh₂.Wiktionary
dirá decir v. 3rd pers. sg. fut. ind. (futuro de indicativo) will tell From Latin dicere, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
vive vivir v. 2nd pers. sg. imper. (imperativo) live From Old Spanish bevir.Wiktionary
Siempre siempre adv. always From Old Spanish siempre.Wiktionary
Se se pron. 3rd pers. reflex. herself (reflexive) From Latin .Wiktionary
fue ir v. 3rd pers. sg. pret. ind. (pretérito perfecto simple) went From Latin eo, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
New New adj. new English origin.
York York n. pr. York Old English/Norse origin.
City City n. pr. city From Latin civitas (city).
torre torre n. f. sg. tower From Old Spanish torre, from Latin turris, from Ancient Greek.Wiktionary
un un art. m. sg. a From Old Spanish un.Wiktionary
hotel hotel n. m. sg. hotel From French hôtel.Wiktionary
ha haber v. 3rd pers. sg. pres. ind. (presente de indicativo) has From Old Spanish aver, from Latin habeo ('have, hold').Wiktionary
robado robar v. past part. (participio) stolen From Late Latin raubāre.Wiktionary
cartera cartera n. f. sg. wallet Formed within Spanish from carta + -era.Wiktionary
llevado llevar v. past part. (participio) taken From Latin levāre, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
hasta hasta prep. even From Old Spanish fasta.Wiktionary
tu tu adj. possessive your Formed within Spanish from tuyo.Wiktionary
piel piel n. f. sg. skin From Latin pellis, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
Por por prep. for From Old Spanish por, from Late Latin pōr, from Latin prō.Wiktionary
eso ese pron. demonstrative that From Latin ipse.Wiktionary
bebía beber v. 3rd pers. sg. impf. ind. (pretérito imperfecto) drank From Latin bibere, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
copa copa n. f. sg. glass From Latin cuppa, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
licor licor n. m. sg. liquor From Latin liquor, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
besaba besar v. 3rd pers. sg. impf. ind. (pretérito imperfecto) kissed From Latin basiare, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
narcótico narcótico adj. m. sg. narcotic From Medieval Latin narcoticum.Wiktionary
sabor sabor n. m. sg. flavor From Latin sapor.Wiktionary
Es ser v. 3rd pers. sg. pres. ind. (presente de indicativo) it is From Latin sum.Wiktionary
el el art. m. sg. the From Latin ille, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
beso beso n. m. sg. kiss From Latin basium, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
calor calor n. m. sg. heat From Latin calor, probably from Old Spanish.Wiktionary
sacar sacar v., inf. to take out/show From Old Spanish sacar.Wiktionary
cara cara n. f. sg. face From Late Latin.Wiktionary

Linguistic analysis is produced with AI assistance and reviewed by hand before publication. It is designed as an educational aid and may still contain translation or etymological errors.

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