El Reloj Cucú Maná Translation Meaning and Lyrics

Song Meaning

'El Reloj Cucú' means 'The Cuckoo Clock' in English. It is a name of a song by 'Maná' human translated here by a native speaker.

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Lyrics and Translations

'El Reloj Cucú' human translated and annotated. Look for notes about interesting vocabulary, language constructions, idioms, changes to transcribed words, grammar rules and general info that our members have discovered

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Line 1

Original Lyrics: El relojito cucú sonaba

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Determiner	Noun	Noun	Verb
el	reloj	cucú	sonaba
Masculine singular definite article; the.	clock	cuckoo	to sound, to ring
			1st Person Singular Indicative Imperfect of the verb sonar
The		cuckoo clock	was ringing

Aligned Translation: The cuckoo clock was ringing

Free Translation: The cuckoo clock was ticking

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Line 2

Original Lyrics: Papá besó mi frente

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Noun	Verb	Adjective	Noun
papá	besó	mío	frente
colloquial:familiar affectionate dad	to kiss	predicative or after the noun mine, my.	anatomy forehead, brow
	3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb besar
Dad	kissed	my	forehead

Aligned Translation: Dad kissed my forehead

Free Translation: Dad kissed my forehead

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Line 3

Original Lyrics: Me dijo "buenas noches, hijito"

Typing Test: " , "

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Pronoun	Verb		Adjective	Noun		Noun
mí	dijo		bueno	noche		hijito
me; (declined form of yo used as the object of a preposition)	to say, to tell		good	night (the period between sunset and sunrise)		Diminutive of hijo
	3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb decir
	He said to me	"	good	night	,	son	"

Aligned Translation: He said, "good night, son"

Free Translation: He said, "good night, son"

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Line 4

Original Lyrics: Y me apagó la luz

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Conjunction	Pronoun	Verb	Determiner	Noun
y	mí	apagó	la	luz
and	me; (declined form of yo used as the object of a preposition)	transitive to shut off, to turn off, to switch off, to shut down, to power off	the	light
		3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb apagar
And		turned off	the	light

Aligned Translation: And turned off the light

Free Translation: And turned off the light

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Line 5

Original Lyrics: Oye, cucú, papá se fue

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Interjection		Noun		Noun	Verb
oye		cucú		papá	fue
(exclamation) hey		cuckoo		colloquial:familiar affectionate dad	reflexive to go away, to leave, to be off (see irse)
					3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb ir
Hey	,	cuckoo	,	dad	left

Aligned Translation: Hey, cuckoo, daddy's gone

Free Translation: Hey, cuckoo, dad's gone

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Line 6

Original Lyrics: Prende la luz, que tengo miedo

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Verb	Determiner	Noun		Conjunction	Verb	Noun
prende	la	luz		que	tengo	miedo
to turn on (light, machine etc.)	the	light		that	transitive to have, feel (internally)	fear
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb prender					1st Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb tener
turn on	the	light	,	that	I have	fear

Aligned Translation: Turn on the light, I'm afraid

Free Translation: Turn on the light, I'm afraid

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Line 7

Original Lyrics: Oye, cucú, papá se fue

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Interjection		Noun		Noun	Verb
oye		cucú		papá	fue
(exclamation) hey		cuckoo		colloquial:familiar affectionate dad	reflexive to go away, to leave, to be off (see irse)
					3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb ir
Hey	,	cuckoo	,	dad	left

Aligned Translation: Hey, cuckoo, daddy's gone

Free Translation: Hey, cuckoo, dad's gone

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Line 8

Original Lyrics: Prende la luz y apaga el tiempo

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Verb	Determiner	Noun	Conjunction	Verb	Determiner	Noun
prende	la	luz	y	apaga	el	tiempo
to turn on (light, machine etc.)	the	light	and	transitive to shut off, to turn off, to switch off, to shut down, to power off	Masculine singular definite article; the.	time
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb prender				3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb apagar
Turn on	the	light	and	turn off	the	time

Aligned Translation: Turn on the light and shut off the time

Free Translation: Turn on the light and shut off the time

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Line 9

Original Lyrics: Esta canción de amor

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Adjective	Noun	Preposition	Noun
este	canción	de	amor
this	song	of; ’s; (used after the thing owned and before the owner)	love

This	song	of	love

Aligned Translation: This love song

Free Translation: This love song

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Line 10

Original Lyrics: Va para mi papá

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Verb	Preposition	Adjective	Noun
va	para	mío	papá
intransitive to go	to, in order to, so, for (expressing the intended purpose of an action)	predicative or after the noun mine, my.	colloquial:familiar affectionate dad
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb ir
It goes	to	my	dad

Aligned Translation: It goes to my dad

Free Translation: Goes to my dad

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Line 11

Original Lyrics: Se escapó al viento

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Pronoun	Verb	Preposition	Determiner	Noun
él	escapó	a	el	viento
he, him, masculine personal third person subject and disjunctive pronoun (used as a subject and after prepositions)	intransitive:reflexive to run away, to get away, to slip away, to flee	to	Masculine singular definite article; the.	wind (the movement of air)
	3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb escapar
He	escaped	to	the	wind

Aligned Translation: He ran away into the wind

Free Translation: He ran away into the wind

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Line 12

Original Lyrics: Nos dejó solitos

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Pronoun	Verb	Adjective
nosotros	dejó	solo
we (masculine plural)	transitive to leave, to abandon, to dump	alone, by oneself
	3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb dejar
	He left	us alone

Aligned Translation: He left us alone

Free Translation: He left us alone

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Line 13

Original Lyrics: Esta canción de amor

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Adjective	Noun	Preposition	Noun
este	canción	de	amor
this	song	of; ’s; (used after the thing owned and before the owner)	love

This	song	of	love

Aligned Translation: This love song

Free Translation: This love song

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Line 14

Original Lyrics: Va para mi mamá

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Verb		Adjective	Noun
va		mío	mamá
intransitive to go		predicative or after the noun mine, my.	colloquial:familiar affectionate mum, mom
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb ir
It goes	to	my	mom

Aligned Translation: It goes to my mom

Free Translation: Goes to my mom

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Line 15

Original Lyrics: Que aguantó todito

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Conjunction	Verb	Adjective
que	aguantó	todo ³
that	to put up with, tolerate or bear, endure	all, every
	3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb aguantar
That	endured	all
³ “Todito” Diminutive for “Todo” – “All, everything”

Aligned Translation: That endured all

Free Translation: Who endured all

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Line 16

Original Lyrics: Le dolió hasta el hueso

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Pronoun	Verb	Preposition	Determiner	Noun
ella	dolió	hasta	el	hueso
she, her (used subjectively and after prepositions)	transitive to hurt; to ache	up to, to the point of, as much as	Masculine singular definite article; the.	anatomy bone
	3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb doler
	It hurt her	to	the	bone

Aligned Translation: It hurt her to the bone

Free Translation: It hurt her to the bone

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Line 17

Original Lyrics: Es por eso que mamá

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Verb	Pronoun	Adverb	Noun
es	eso	por qué	mamá
to be (essentially or identified as).	Neuter singlar of ése; that	why, for what reason	colloquial:familiar affectionate mum, mom
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb ser
	that is	why	mom

Aligned Translation: That's why Mom

Free Translation: That's why Mom

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Line 18

Original Lyrics: Lloraba en silencio

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Verb	Preposition	Noun
lloraba	en	silencio
intransitive to cry, to weep	in, at, on	silence
3rd Person Singular Indicative Imperfect of the verb llorar
Cried	in	silence

Aligned Translation: Cried in silence

Free Translation: Cried in silence

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Line 19

Original Lyrics: Lloraba en las noches

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Verb	Preposition	Determiner	Noun
lloraba	en	las	noche
intransitive to cry, to weep	in, at, on	the	night (the period between sunset and sunrise)
3rd Person Singular Indicative Imperfect of the verb llorar
She cried	in	the	nights

Aligned Translation: She cried at night

Free Translation: She cried at night

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Line 20

Original Lyrics: Y cómo aguantó por las mañanas

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Conjunction	Noun	Verb	Preposition	Determiner	Noun
y	cómo	aguantó	en	las	mañana
and	how	to take, to hold	in, at, on	the	the morning
		3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb aguantar
And	how	she held	in	the	mornings

Aligned Translation: And how she held out in the mornings

Free Translation: And how she held out in the mornings

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Line 21

Original Lyrics: Oye, cucú, papá se fue

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Interjection		Noun		Noun	Verb
oye		cucú		papá	fue
(exclamation) hey		cuckoo		colloquial:familiar affectionate dad	reflexive to go away, to leave, to be off (see irse)
					3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb ir
Hey	,	cuckoo	,	dad	left

Aligned Translation: Hey, cuckoo, daddy's gone

Free Translation: Hey, cuckoo, dad's gone

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Line 22

Original Lyrics: Prende la luz que tengo miedo

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Verb	Determiner	Noun	Pronoun	Verb	Noun
prende	la	luz	que	tengo	miedo
to turn on (light, machine etc.)	the	light	that; whom	transitive to have, feel (internally)	fear
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb prender				1st Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb tener
Turn on	the	light	that	I have	fear

Aligned Translation: Turn on the light that I'm afraid

Free Translation: Turn on the light that I'm afraid

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Line 23

Original Lyrics: Oye, cucú, papá se fue

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Word By Word Lyrics:

Interjection		Noun		Noun	Verb
oye		cucú		papá	fue
(exclamation) hey		cuckoo		colloquial:familiar affectionate dad	reflexive to go away, to leave, to be off (see irse)
					3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb ir
Hey	,	cuckoo	,	dad	left

Aligned Translation: Hey, cuckoo, daddy's gone

Free Translation: Hey, cuckoo, dad's gone

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Line 24

Original Lyrics: Prende la luz y apaga el tiempo

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Verb	Determiner	Noun	Conjunction	Verb	Determiner	Noun
prende	la	luz	y	apaga	el	tiempo
to turn on (light, machine etc.)	the	light	and	transitive to shut off, to turn off, to switch off, to shut down, to power off	Masculine singular definite article; the.	time
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb prender				3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb apagar
Turn on	the	light	and	turn off	the	time

Aligned Translation: Turn on the light and shut off the time

Free Translation: Turn on the light and shut off the time

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Line 25

Original Lyrics: Esta canción de amor

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Adjective	Noun	Preposition	Noun
este	canción	de	amor
this	song	of; ’s; (used after the thing owned and before the owner)	love

This	song	of	love

Aligned Translation: This love song

Free Translation: This love song

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Line 26

Original Lyrics: Va pa' mis hermanos

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Verb	Preposition	Adjective	Noun
va	para ²	mi	hermano
intransitive to go	to, in order to, so, for (expressing the intended purpose of an action)	before the noun Apocopic form of mío, my	brother
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb ir
It goes	to	my	brothers
^2,3 “Pa'” contraction for “Para” – “To, for”

Aligned Translation: It goes to my brothers

Free Translation: Goes to my brothers

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Line 27

Original Lyrics: Que crecimos juntos

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Conjunction	Verb	Adjective
que	crecimos	junto
that	to grow	together
	1st Person Plural Indicative Preterite of the verb crecer
That	grew up	together

Aligned Translation: That we grew up together

Free Translation: That we grew up together

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Line 28

Original Lyrics: Lo extrañamos años

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Pronoun	Verb	Noun
nosotros	extrañamos	año
we (masculine plural)	transitive to miss (someone or something)	year
	1st Person Plural Indicative Preterite of the verb extrañar
We	miss him	years

Aligned Translation: We miss him for years

Free Translation: We miss him for years

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Line 29

Original Lyrics: Este grito de amor

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Adjective	Noun	Preposition	Noun
este	grito	de	amor
this	a cry, a yell, a scream	of (expressing composition, substance)	love

This	cry	of	love

Aligned Translation: This cry of love

Free Translation: This cry of love

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Line 30

Original Lyrics: Se lo doy al cielo

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Verb	Preposition	Determiner	Noun
doy	a	el	cielo
transitive to give, to give out	to	Masculine singular definite article; the.	heaven
1st Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb dar
I give it	to	the	heaven

Aligned Translation: I give it to heaven

Free Translation: I give it to heaven

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Line 31

Original Lyrics: Le pregunto tanto, tanto, tanto

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Pronoun		Adjective		Adjective		Adjective
él		tanto		tanto		tanto
it, masculine non-personal third-person subject and disjunctive pronoun (used as a subject and after prepositions to refer to masculine nouns)		so much, as much, that much		so much, as much, that much		so much, as much, that much

	I ask it	so much	,	so much	,	so much

Aligned Translation: I ask it so much, much, much

Free Translation: I ask it so much, much, much

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Line 32

Original Lyrics: No contesta nada

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Adverb	Verb	Pronoun
no	contesta	nada
not	to answer back	when used with a negative verb anything
	3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb contestar
Does not	answer	anything

Aligned Translation: Doesn't answer anything

Free Translation: Doesn't answer anything

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Line 33

Original Lyrics: Oye, cucú, papá se fue

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Word By Word Lyrics:

Interjection		Noun		Noun	Verb
oye		cucú		papá	fue
(exclamation) hey		cuckoo		colloquial:familiar affectionate dad	reflexive to go away, to leave, to be off (see irse)
					3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb ir
Hey	,	cuckoo	,	dad	left

Aligned Translation: Hey, cuckoo, daddy's gone

Free Translation: Hey, cuckoo, dad's gone

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Line 34

Original Lyrics: Prende la luz que tengo miedo

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Verb	Determiner	Noun	Pronoun	Verb	Noun
prende	la	luz	que	tengo	miedo
to turn on (light, machine etc.)	the	light	that; whom	transitive to have, feel (internally)	fear
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb prender				1st Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb tener
Turn on	the	light	that	I have	fear

Aligned Translation: Turn on the light that I'm afraid

Free Translation: Turn on the light that I'm afraid

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Line 35

Original Lyrics: Oye, cucú, papá se fue

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Word By Word Lyrics:

Interjection		Noun		Noun	Verb
oye		cucú		papá	fue
(exclamation) hey		cuckoo		colloquial:familiar affectionate dad	reflexive to go away, to leave, to be off (see irse)
					3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb ir
Hey	,	cuckoo	,	dad	left

Aligned Translation: Hey, cuckoo, daddy's gone

Free Translation: Hey, cuckoo, dad's gone

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Line 36

Original Lyrics: Prende la luz y apaga el tiempo

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Verb	Determiner	Noun	Conjunction	Verb	Determiner	Noun
prende	la	luz	y	apaga	el	tiempo
to turn on (light, machine etc.)	the	light	and	transitive to shut off, to turn off, to switch off, to shut down, to power off	Masculine singular definite article; the.	time
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb prender				3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb apagar
Turn on	the	light	and	turn off	the	time

Aligned Translation: Turn on the light and shut off the time

Free Translation: Turn on the light and shut off the time

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Line 37

Original Lyrics: Oye, cucú, papá se fue

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Word By Word Lyrics:

Interjection		Noun		Noun	Verb
oye		cucú		papá	fue
(exclamation) hey		cuckoo		colloquial:familiar affectionate dad	reflexive to go away, to leave, to be off (see irse)
					3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb ir
Hey	,	cuckoo	,	dad	left

Aligned Translation: Hey, cuckoo, daddy's gone

Free Translation: Hey, cuckoo, dad's gone

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Line 38

Original Lyrics: Prende la luz, cómo lo extraño

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Verb	Determiner	Noun		Noun	Pronoun	Verb
prende	la	luz		cómo	él	extraño
to turn on (light, machine etc.)	the	light		how	he, him, masculine personal third person subject and disjunctive pronoun (used as a subject and after prepositions)	transitive to miss (someone or something)
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb prender						1st Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb extrañar
Turn on	the	light	,	how		I miss him

Aligned Translation: Turn on the light, how I miss him

Free Translation: Turn on the light, how I miss him

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Line 39

Original Lyrics: Oye, cucú, papá se fue

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Word By Word Lyrics:

Interjection		Noun		Noun	Verb
oye		cucú		papá	fue
(exclamation) hey		cuckoo		colloquial:familiar affectionate dad	reflexive to go away, to leave, to be off (see irse)
					3rd Person Singular Indicative Preterite of the verb ir
Hey	,	cuckoo	,	dad	left

Aligned Translation: Hey, cuckoo, daddy's gone

Free Translation: Hey, cuckoo, dad's gone

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Line 40

Original Lyrics: Prende la luz

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Verb	Determiner	Noun
prende	la	luz
to turn on (light, machine etc.)	the	light
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb prender
Turn on	the	light

Aligned Translation: Turn on the light

Free Translation: Turn on the light

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Review

“El reloj cucú” is a song by the Mexican band Maná, it was released in 1996 and reached the number 40 on the U.S Billboard Hot Latin Track, after that the song reached the number 35 position where it stayed for 3 weeks. “El reloj cucú” also has a Salsa version interpreted by the singer Maelo Ruiz.

Losing your father when you are just a child is a traumatizing event, it doesn’t matter if he abandons you or he died, not having your dad at that age usually drive you to a lot of question that will remain unanswered until you are an adult. That is the theme of “El reloj cucú” the lyrics tell us the story of a child in his bed, his dad kisses his forehead setting him to sleep, he turned off the light and leaves the room, and that was the last time the poor child saw his dad.

The lyrics continue to explain that after his dad leave his mom suffered a lot in silence, crying at night and having a smile in the days to take care of her children, she endured all the pain and move on with her life. The song speaks about the child and his brother who had to grow up together without a father figure in their lives, they asked heaven all the time what happened to their dad, but never received an answer. The song finishes that the child will love and miss his father forever and will never forget him.

Fher Olvera, vocalist of Maná told in an interview that the song was an inspiration in his personal story as his father died when he was just seven years old, he asked his mom all the time what happened to his father, asked where he was but his mom didn’t know how to tell him the truth. He stated in the interview the heard his mother crying at night all the time. Thanks to that experience he discovered that it is truly difficult for a child to lose his father and it is actually a pretty common success in many families.

The theme of this song is sad and the lyrics will make you feel emotional and comprehensive, this song is great if you want to practice your spoken abilities since the singing is slow with a good pace, the words are clear and the sentences are easy to pronounce.

If you liked “El reloj cucú” be sure to check Maná's social media where you can find more info about this Mexican band and their other songs.

Submitted by user: ANITA

Average Ratings

Most people find the song lyrics very easy to understand lyrics, lyrics sung very slowly and it has very easy to remember verbs and nouns

Most words used are in very common daily usage.^RAE

El Reloj Cucú has 146 BPM (beats per minute)

References

^RAE Based on a median word frequency of 750 using the frequency database from the Royal Spanish Academy (La Real Academia Española)

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