Song guide

Échame La Culpa

Demi Lovato, Luis Fonsi

Échame La Culpa by Demi Lovato, Luis Fonsi, line by line: what the lyrics mean, 22 expressions explained and 313 words translated with their grammar. Learn Spanish from the song, free.

69 lines translated 313 words explained 22 expressions

Lyrics with English translation, line by line

Each line as sung, what it means, and — where it needs one — why it's said that way.

  1. Hey, Fonsi

    Hey, Fonsi

    Fonsi refers to Luis Fonsi, the Puerto Rican singer who co-wrote and performs this song. He is best known internationally for 'Despacito'.

  2. Oh, no

    Oh, no

  3. ¿Qué pasa, Demi?

    What's up, Demi?

    Demi refers to Demi Lovato, the American pop star who features on this song. The two artists are having a brief spoken exchange at the opening.

  4. Hmm, hmm-hmm

    Hmm, hmm-hmm

  5. Ey, yeah (Ay)

    Hey, yeah (Ay)

  6. Tengo en esta historia algo que confesar

    I have something in this story I need to confess

  7. Ya entendí muy bien qué fue lo que pasó

    I already understood very well what happened

  8. Y aunque duela tanto, tengo que aceptar

    And even though it hurts so much, I have to accept

  9. Que tú no eres la mala, que el malo soy yo

    That you are not the bad one — I am the bad one

  10. No me conociste nunca de verdad

    You never really knew me

  11. Ya se fue la magia que te enamoró

    The magic that made you fall in love is gone

  12. Y es que no quisiera estar en tu lugar

    And I wouldn't want to be in your place

  13. Porque tu error solo fue conocerme

    Because your only mistake was getting to know me

  14. No ere' tú, no ere' tú, no ere' tú, soy yo (Soy yo)

    It's not you, it's not you, it's not you — it's me

    The spelling 'ere'' instead of 'eres' reflects a Caribbean Spanish pronunciation feature where the final 's' of a word is dropped or aspirated. This is common in Puerto Rican, Cuban, and Dominican Spanish.

  15. No te quiero hacer sufrir

    I don't want to make you suffer

  16. Es mejor olvidar y dejarlo así (Así)

    It's better to forget and leave it like this

  17. Échame la culpa

    Blame me

    'Échame la culpa' is also the title of this song. The phrase became a viral hit partly because it captures a self-deprecating, generous attitude in a breakup — taking all the blame to spare the other person.

  18. No ere' tú, no ere' tú, no ere' tú, soy yo (Soy yo)

    It's not you, it's not you, it's not you — it's me

  19. No te quiero hacer sufrir

    I don't want to make you suffer

  20. Es mejor olvidar y dejarlo así (Así)

    It's better to forget and leave it like this

  21. Échame la culpa

    Blame me

  22. Okay, I don't really, really wanna fight anymore

    Okay, I don't really, really wanna fight anymore

  23. I don't really, really want to fake it no more

    I don't really, really want to fake it no more

  24. Play me like The Beatles, baby, just let it be

    Play me like The Beatles, baby, just let it be

    'Play me like The Beatles, baby, just let it be' references the Beatles song 'Let It Be' (1970), invoking its message of acceptance and moving on without fighting.

  25. So come and put the blame on me, yeah

    So come and put the blame on me, yeah

  26. I don't really, really wanna fight anymore

    I don't really, really wanna fight anymore

  27. I don't really, really want to fake it no more (Oh, oh)

    I don't really, really want to fake it no more

  28. Play me like The Beatles, baby, just let it be

    Play me like The Beatles, baby, just let it be

  29. So come and put the blame on me (Yeah, yeah)

    So come and put the blame on me

  30. No ere' tú, no ere' tú, no ere' tú, soy yo (Soy yo)

    It's not you, it's not you, it's not you — it's me

  31. No te quiero hacer sufrir

    I don't want to make you suffer

  32. Es mejor olvidar y dejarlo así (Así)

    It's better to forget and leave it like this

  33. Échame la culpa

    Blame me

  34. No ere' tú, no ere' tú, no ere' tú, soy yo (Soy yo)

    It's not you, it's not you, it's not you — it's me

  35. No te quiero hacer sufrir

    I don't want to make you suffer

  36. Es mejor olvidar y dejarlo así (Así)

    It's better to forget and leave it like this

  37. Échame la culpa

    Blame me

  38. Solamente te falta un beso (Woh-oh)

    All you're missing is one kiss

    The bridge 'solamente te falta un beso' shifts the tone — instead of pure self-blame, the singer hints at an unfinished romantic moment, adding emotional ambiguity to the breakup narrative.

  39. Solamente te falta un beso (Woh-oh)

    All you're missing is one kiss

  40. Ese beso que siempre te prometí

    That kiss I always promised you

  41. Échame la culpa

    Blame me

  42. Solamente te falta un beso (Woh-oh)

    All you're missing is one kiss

  43. Solamente te falta un beso (Woh-oh)

    All you're missing is one kiss

  44. Ese beso que siempre te prometí

    That kiss I always promised you

  45. Échame la culpa

    Blame me

  46. Okay, I don't really, really wanna fight anymore

    Okay, I don't really, really wanna fight anymore

  47. I don't really, really want to fake it no more

    I don't really, really want to fake it no more

  48. Play me like The Beatles, baby, just let it be

    Play me like The Beatles, baby, just let it be

  49. So come and put the blame on me, yeah

    So come and put the blame on me, yeah

  50. I don't really, really wanna fight anymore

    I don't really, really wanna fight anymore

  51. I don't really, really want to fake it no more (Oh, oh)

    I don't really, really want to fake it no more

  52. Play me like The Beatles, baby, just let it be

    Play me like The Beatles, baby, just let it be

  53. So come and put the blame on me (Yeah, yeah)

    So come and put the blame on me

  54. No ere' tú, no ere' tú, no ere' tú, soy yo (Soy yo)

    It's not you, it's not you, it's not you — it's me

  55. No te quiero hacer sufrir

    I don't want to make you suffer

  56. Es mejor olvidar y dejarlo así (Así, así, así, yeah)

    It's better to forget and leave it like this

  57. Échame la culpa

    Blame me

  58. No ere' tú, no ere' tú, no ere' tú, soy yo (Soy yo)

    It's not you, it's not you, it's not you — it's me

  59. No te quiero hacer sufrir (Oh, oh, oh)

    I don't want to make you suffer

  60. Es mejor olvidar y dejarlo así (Así)

    It's better to forget and leave it like this

  61. Échame la culpa

    Blame me

  62. Solamente te falta un beso (No, woh-oh)

    All you're missing is one kiss

  63. Solamente te falta un beso (Woh-oh)

    All you're missing is one kiss

  64. Ese beso que siempre te prometí (Oh-oh-oh-oh-ouh)

    That kiss I always promised you

  65. Échame la culpa

    Blame me

  66. Solamente te falta un beso (Oh-oh-oh-oh, woh-oh)

    All you're missing is one kiss

  67. Solamente te falta un beso (Woh-oh)

    All you're missing is one kiss

  68. Ese beso que siempre te prometí (Oh-oh-oh-oh-ouh)

    That kiss I always promised you

  69. Échame la culpa

    Blame me

Expressions and idioms in “Échame La Culpa”

The lines that don't mean what the dictionary says.

Tengo ... algo que confesar I have something to confess
tener + noun/pronoun + que + infinitive is a common construction meaning 'to have something to do'. It is distinct from tener que + infinitive (obligation); here tener means 'to have' in the possessive sense.
algo que confesar something to confess
In Spanish, algo que + infinitive means 'something to [verb]'. The relative pronoun que links the indefinite pronoun to the action, mirroring the English pattern but using the infinitive rather than a gerund.
Ya entendí I already understood / Now I understand
ya with the preterite tense signals that an action is completed: 'already done'. With the present tense, ya means 'now' or 'right away'. This dual function of ya is a key feature of Spanish that learners often find confusing.
lo que pasó what happened
lo que is the neuter relative pronoun meaning 'what' (the thing that). It is used when there is no specific noun antecedent. English uses 'what', but Spanish requires lo que rather than just que.
aunque duela tanto even though it hurts so much
aunque (even though/although) triggers the subjunctive (duela) when the speaker presents the situation as a concession or something not fully accepted as fact. If the speaker treated it as a plain fact, the indicative would be used instead.
tengo que aceptar I have to accept
tener que + infinitive expresses personal obligation, equivalent to English 'have to' or 'must'. It is one of the most common modal constructions in Spanish.
el malo soy yo I am the bad one
In Spanish, the verb ser can be inverted for emphasis: instead of 'yo soy el malo', the speaker says 'el malo soy yo', placing the predicate first for dramatic stress. This inversion is common in song lyrics and spoken Spanish.
no me conociste nunca you never really knew me
Spanish allows double negation: no ... nunca (not ... never) is standard and does not cancel out. The sentence literally says 'you did not know me never', which in English becomes 'you never knew me'. Nunca can appear before or after the verb.
de verdad truly / really
de verdad is a fixed adverbial phrase meaning 'truly' or 'for real'. It functions like an intensifier and cannot be translated word-for-word as 'of truth'.
la magia que te enamoró the magic that made you fall in love
enamorar (transitive, non-reflexive) means 'to make someone fall in love'. It works like gustar: the subject is the thing causing the feeling (la magia), and te is the indirect object (you). Compare enamorarse de, which means 'to fall in love with' from the lover's perspective.
se fue left / went away
irse (the reflexive form of ir) means 'to leave' or 'to go away', which is a meaning-shift from plain ir ('to go'). Here se fue means 'it left/disappeared', not simply 'it went'.
Y es que And the thing is / And it's just that
es que is a very common spoken filler/connector meaning 'the thing is' or 'it's just that'. It introduces an explanation or justification and has no direct single-word English equivalent.
estar en tu lugar to be in your place / in your shoes
estar en el lugar de alguien is a fixed idiom equivalent to English 'to be in someone's shoes'. It uses estar (temporary state) rather than ser.
no quisiera estar en tu lugar I wouldn't want to be in your place
quisiera is the imperfect subjunctive of querer used as a polite or softened conditional ('I would like / I wouldn't want'). estar en tu lugar is the fixed expression meaning 'to be in your shoes/position'.
tu error solo fue conocerme your only mistake was getting to know me
In this construction, the infinitive conocerme acts as the subject complement after fue (was). Spanish freely uses infinitives as nouns in this way. The attached pronoun me on conocer makes it 'to know me'.
no ere' tú, soy yo it's not you, it's me
Spanish uses the verb ser (to be) with subject pronouns to express identity or attribution. The explicit pronouns tú and yo are used here for contrast and emphasis — in Spanish, subject pronouns are normally dropped, so including them adds strong stress.
no te quiero hacer sufrir I don't want to make you suffer
querer + hacer + infinitive forms a causative chain: 'to want to make [someone] do [something]'. The indirect object pronoun te (you) is placed before the conjugated verb quiero, not attached to the infinitives.
dejarlo así to leave it like this / to let it be
dejar + object pronoun + así means 'to leave it as it is'. The pronoun lo refers back to the situation. This is a common way to say 'let it go' or 'leave things as they are' in Spanish.
es mejor it is better
es mejor + infinitive is a fixed impersonal construction meaning 'it is better to [do something]'. The subject is the implied 'it' (no explicit subject in Spanish), and mejor is the comparative of bueno.
Échame la culpa Blame me / Put the blame on me
echar la culpa a alguien is the fixed Spanish idiom for 'to blame someone'. Literally 'to throw the blame at someone'. The pronoun me (to me) is attached to the imperative échame. This is not deducible from echar (to throw/pour) alone.
te falta un beso you are missing one kiss / you lack one kiss
faltar works like gustar: the thing that is missing is the grammatical subject (un beso), and the person who lacks it is expressed with an indirect object pronoun (te). The literal structure is 'one kiss is lacking to you', but English renders it as 'you are missing a kiss'.
te prometí I promised you
prometer takes an indirect object pronoun to indicate the person promised to. Te here means 'to you'. Spanish places this pronoun before the conjugated verb, unlike English where 'you' follows the verb.

Vocabulary to learn from “Échame La Culpa”

The words the song uses most.

Verbs in the song, and the form being sung

Present tense for each; the highlighted row is the one you'll hear.

ser are

sung: eres irregular
ser — present tense
yo soy
tú eres
él / ella / usted es
nosotros somos
vosotros sois
ellos / ustedes son

echar throw on me / put on me

sung: échame
echar — present tense
yo echo
tú echas
él / ella / usted echa
nosotros echamos
vosotros echáis
ellos / ustedes echan

faltar is missing / lacks

sung: falta
faltar — present tense
yo falto
tú faltas
él / ella / usted falta
nosotros faltamos
vosotros faltáis
ellos / ustedes faltan

querer would want / I wish

sung: quisiera irregular
querer — present tense
yo quiero
tú quieres
él / ella / usted quiere
nosotros queremos
vosotros queréis
ellos / ustedes quieren

hacer to make / to do

irregular
hacer — present tense
yo hago
tú haces
él / ella / usted hace
nosotros hacemos
vosotros hacéis
ellos / ustedes hacen

Grammar you'll meet in this song

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