“Cecilia” by Juanes ft. Juan Luis Guerra, English translation

“Cecilia” Lyrics
Album: Vida Cotidiana (Daily Life), 2023
Style: Tropical pop. Peace and love song, singing to Cecilia that they shouldn’t fight and that they should dance instead.
Country: Colombia, Dominican Republic
Listen: YouTube

Lyrics Translation:

Cuando hablamos y peleamos,
No vamos a ningún lado.
Nos lastimamos
Y más y más
Y más y más nos apartamos.

When we talk and fight,
We don’t go anywhere.
We hurt each other
And more and more
And more and more we distance ourselves.

Qué tal si nos olvidamos…
Oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh,
De esa rabia destructora,
Y empezamos por ahora
A mirarnos a los ojos,
Olvidando los enojos,
Quizá todo así mejora.

How about we forget…
Oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh,
About that destructive rage,
And we start now
To look each other in the eyes,
Forgetting our annoyances,
Perhaps then all improves.

Siento el aire acabarse
Si dejas de ser mi novia,
Y cuando intento olvidarte,
Más te pienso y no te sales.

I feel the air run out
If you stop being my girlfriend,
And when I try to forget you,
I think of you more and you don’t exit (my head).

Cecilia, ven baila conmigo,
Que tus atardeceres rojos
Son el delirio de mis ojos.

Cecilia, come dance with me,
Because your red sunsets
Are the delirium of my eyes.

Cecilia, ven baila conmigo,
Tú puedes colorear mis días
Cuando dices que me amas
Y mi corazón en llamas apaga.

Cecilia, come dance with me,
You can color my days
When you say that you love me
And my flaming heart stops.

Sincero este amor por ti
Es de lo mejor que tengo.
Si pudiera regresarme en el tiempo,
Me volvería a enamorar igual.

Sincerely, this love for you
Is of the best that I have.
If I could turn back time,
I would fall in love the same.

Siento el aire acabarse,
Si dejas de ser mi novia,
Y cuando intento olvidarte
Más te pienso y no te sales.

I feel the air run out
If you stop being my girlfriend,
And when I try to forget you
I think of you more and you don’t exit (my head).

Cecilia, ven baila conmigo,
Que tus atardeceres rojos
Son el delirio de mis ojos.

Cecilia, come dance with me,
Because your red sunsets
Are the delirium of my eyes.

Cecilia, ven baila conmigo,
Tú puedes colorear mis días
Cuando dices que me amas
Y mi corazón en llamas apaga.

Cecilia, come dance with me,
You can color my days
When you say that you love me
And my flaming heart stops.

Eres mi cielo, mi alma gemela.
Estar contigo, amor, que vale la pena.
Eres mi anhelo, mi vida entera,
Y cuando intento olvidarte
Más te pienso y no te sales.

You are my heaven, my twin soul.
Being with you, love, is worth it.
You are my yearning, my whole life,
And when I try to forget you
I think of you more and you don’t edit (my head).

Cecilia, ven baila conmigo,
Que tus atardeceres rojos
Son el delirio de mis ojos.

Cecilia, come dance with me,
Because your red sunsets
Are the delirium of my eyes.

Cecilia, ven baila conmigo,
Tú puedes colorear mis días
Cuando dices que me amas
Y mi corazón en llamas apaga.

Cecilia, come dance with me,
You can color my days
When you say that you love me
And my flaming heart stops.

Cecilia (Cecilia, ven baila conmigo)
Cecilia (Cecilia, ven baila conmigo)
Cecilia (Cecilia, ven baila conmigo)
Cecilia (Cecilia, ven baila conmigo)

Cecilia (Cecilia, come dance with me)
Cecilia (Cecilia, come dance with me)
Cecilia (Cecilia, come dance with me)
Cecilia (Cecilia, come dance with me)

Lere-lere-lere-le-le-le-le,
Baila conmigo,
Lere-lere-lere-le-le-le-le,
Baila conmigo,
Lere-lere-lere-le-le-le-le,
Baila conmigo

Lere-lere-lere-le-le-le,
Dance with me,
Lere-lere-lere-le-le-le,
Dance with me,
Lere-lere-lere-le-le-le,
Dance with me

Translation Notes:

Cuando hablamos y peleamos,
No vamos a ningún lado.

When we talk and fight,
We don’t go anywhere.

When we talk and fight,
We don’t go to any place.

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Y cuando intento olvidarte,
Más te pienso y no te sales.

And when I try to forget you,
I think of you more and you don’t exit (my head).

The “my head” (or “my mind”) is not in the lyrics, but it is implied since he is talking about his thoughts.

---

Si pudiera regresarme en el tiempo,
Me volvería a enamorar igual.

If I could turn back time,
I would fall in love the same.

If I could turn back time,
I would fall in love the same way / just the same.

He wouldn’t do anything different if he could go back in time. Meeting Cecilia and falling in love with her is the perfect outcome.

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Estar contigo, amor, que vale la pena.

Being with you, love, is worth it. [*literal phrase]

Being with you, love, it is worth the trouble. [*literal word-for-word]

In Spanish, pena (f. noun) means “struggles, hardship, difficulty, trouble”. In other contexts, it can also mean sorrow or sadness, but that isn’t relevant here.

The whole phrase, vale la pena, means “worth the trouble” or “worth the effort”. In English, the shortest translation would just be “worth it”.

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Lere-lere-lere-le-le-le-le.

This is just a sound.