Song guide

Vale la Pena

Juan Luis Guerra

Vale la Pena by Juan Luis Guerra, line by line: what the lyrics mean, 24 expressions explained and 356 words translated with their grammar. Learn Spanish from the song, free.

76 lines translated 356 words explained 24 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.

Te extraño, mi vida

I miss you, my life

'mi vida' as a term of endearment is extremely common across Latin America and Spain, used between romantic partners, close friends, and family members.
Como nunca y mi corazón quisiera

Like never before, and my heart would wish
(eh, eh, oh, oh, quisiera)

(eh, eh, oh, oh, would wish)
Sellar tu cariño

To seal your affection
Y coronarlo con luz de primavera

And crown it with the light of spring
(eh, eh, oh, oh, de primavera)

(eh, eh, oh, oh, of spring)
Dime si la luna se ha perdido

Tell me if the moon has gotten lost
Entre tus ojos de palmera...

Among your palm-tree eyes...

'ojos de palmera' (palm-tree eyes) is a poetic image evoking tall, dark, graceful eyes — a common type of romantic metaphor in Latin American song lyrics comparing a lover's features to nature.
¿qué será de mi?

What will become of me?
Dime si tus besos van rodando

Tell me if your kisses are rolling
En el cuadrado de mi esfera

In the square of my sphere

'el cuadrado de mi esfera' (the square of my sphere) is a surrealist or abstract image — a geometric impossibility used poetically to suggest the disorienting, all-encompassing effect of longing.
Si no estás aquí

If you are not here
Despierta la noche

The night awakens
Se acuesta la tarde, respiro...

The afternoon lies down, I breathe...
Sólo pienso en ti

I only think of you
Dime lo que piensas tú de mí

Tell me what you think of me
¡Ay, ay, ay, ay!

Ay, ay, ay, ay!
Te extraño, mi vida, y como siempre

I miss you, my life, and as always
Mi corazón se entrega;

My heart surrenders itself;
(eh, eh, oh, oh, se entrega)

(eh, eh, oh, oh, surrenders itself)
Y un sol cabizbajo me pregunta

And a downcast sun asks me

'cabizbajo' (downcast, head bowed) is a vivid Spanish adjective describing someone with their head hanging low in sadness. Personifying the sun as cabizbajo is a classic example of pathetic fallacy in Spanish-language poetry and song.
Qué más por ti yo diera

What more I would give for you
(eh, eh, oh, oh, qué diera)

(eh, eh, oh, oh, what I would give)
Dime si el azul de tu mañana

Tell me if the blue of your morning
Se despierta en mi ventana...

Wakes up in my window...
¿qué será de mi?

What will become of me?
Dime si la orilla de tu boca

Tell me if the shore of your mouth
Se quedó bajo mi cama

Stayed beneath my bed
Si no estás aquí

If you are not here
Despierta la noche

The night awakens
Y se borra el silencio, respiro...

And the silence fades away, I breathe...
Sólo pienso en ti

I only think of you
Dime lo que piensas tú de mí

Tell me what you think of me
¡Ay, ay, ay, ay!

Ay, ay, ay, ay!
¿Qué vale la pena?

What is worth it?
(¿Qué vale la pena?)

(What is worth it?)
Si un amor se entrega

If a love gives itself
(Que vale la pena

(That is worth it
El sacrificio... tú ves)

The sacrifice... you see)
¿Qué vale la pena?

What is worth it?
(¿Qué vale la pena?)

(What is worth it?)
Si un amor te espera

If a love waits for you
(que vale la pena, sí)

(that is worth it, yes)
¿Qué vale la pena?

What is worth it?
(¿Qué vale la pena?)

(What is worth it?)
Si un amor se entrega

If a love gives itself
(Que vale la pena

(That is worth it
El sacrificio... tú ves)

The sacrifice... you see)
¿Qué vale la pena?

What is worth it?
(¿Qué vale la pena?)

(What is worth it?)
Si un amor te espera

If a love waits for you
(que vale la pena, sí)

(that is worth it, yes)
¡Ah, caray!

Ah, wow!

'¡Ah, caray!' is a mild Mexican Spanish exclamation of surprise or amazement, similar to 'Wow!' or 'Good grief!' It is considered very mild and is safe in all contexts. It appears frequently in Mexican popular music.
Mi corazón se va multiplicando como arena...

My heart keeps multiplying like sand...
¡ah, caray!

Ah, wow!
Sólo el concilio de tus brazos lo sujeta y lo libera...

Only the council of your arms holds it and frees it...

'el concilio de tus brazos' (the council of your arms) is a poetic metaphor comparing the embrace of a loved one to a governing council — suggesting that the arms hold authority over the heart, both restraining and freeing it.
¡ah, caray!

Ah, wow!
Me voy tejiendo como arete sobre el marco de tu oreja...

I weave myself like an earring over the frame of your ear...

'arete' is the Latin American Spanish word for earring (in Spain, 'pendiente' or 'aro' is more common). The image of weaving oneself like an earring over the frame of someone's ear is an intimate, surrealist metaphor for closeness.
¡caramba, tú ves!

Goodness, you see!

'¡Caramba!' is a mild Spanish exclamation of surprise or admiration, used across the Spanish-speaking world. Like 'caray', it is a softened form of a stronger oath and is appropriate in all contexts.
¡Qué barbaridad! Solo como está, no, no, no, tú ves...

What a thing! Alone as it is, no, no, no, you see...

'¡Qué barbaridad!' is one of the most common Spanish exclamations, used to express shock, disbelief, or admiration. 'tú ves' at the end of lines is a colloquial filler phrase, especially in Caribbean and Latin American Spanish, meaning roughly 'you see' or 'you know'.
¿Qué vale la pena?

What is worth it?
(¿Qué vale la pena?)

(What is worth it?)
Si un amor se entrega

If a love gives itself
(Que vale la pena

(That is worth it
El sacrificio... tú ves)

The sacrifice... you see)
¿Qué vale la pena?

What is worth it?
Si un amor te espera

If a love waits for you
(que vale la pena, sí)

(that is worth it, yes)
¿Qué vale la pena?

What is worth it?
(¿Qué vale la pena?)

(What is worth it?)
Si un amor se entrega

If a love gives itself
(Que vale la pena

(That is worth it
¿Qué vale la pena?

What is worth it?
(¿Qué vale la pena?)

(What is worth it?)
Si un amor te espera

If a love waits for you
(que vale la pena, sí)

(that is worth it, yes)

Expressions and idioms in “Vale la Pena”

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

mi vida my life: Used as a term of endearment in Spanish, equivalent to 'my darling' or 'my love' in English. The literal meaning is 'my life', but it functions as an affectionate address.
Te extraño I miss you: extrañar + direct object pronoun is the standard Latin American way to say 'to miss someone'. In Spain, 'echar de menos' is more common. The pronoun te comes before the verb.
Como nunca like never before: A fixed comparative phrase meaning 'more than ever' or 'like never before'. The full implied phrase is 'como nunca (antes)', with 'antes' (before) dropped — common in song lyrics.
mi corazón quisiera my heart would wish: quisiera is the imperfect subjunctive of querer, used here to express a polite or wistful wish — 'would like / would wish'. It is softer and more longing than the present tense querría.
Dime si Tell me if / Tell me whether: dime si introduces an indirect yes/no question. dime is the imperative of decir with the clitic me attached. This construction — imperative + si + clause — is very common in Spanish for asking someone to confirm or reveal information.
se ha perdido has gotten lost: This is the reflexive perfect tense: se + haber (present) + past participle. perderse (reflexive) means 'to get lost', while plain perder means 'to lose'. The reflexive shifts the meaning from active losing to the state of being lost.
qué será de mí what will become of me: The phrase 'ser de alguien' means 'to become of someone' — asking about someone's fate or future. The future tense será adds a sense of anxious wondering. This is a fixed idiomatic structure in Spanish.
van rodando are rolling / keep rolling: ir + gerund is a periphrastic construction expressing a gradual or ongoing action, similar to English 'keep -ing' or 'go on -ing'. It emphasises the continuous, progressive nature of the action more than the simple present would.
Se acuesta lies down / goes to bed: acostarse is a reflexive verb meaning 'to lie down' or 'to go to bed'. The plain verb acostar means 'to put (someone) to bed'. The reflexive se changes the subject into the one performing the action on themselves.
pienso en ti I think of you: pensar governs the preposition en when meaning 'to think about/of someone or something'. English uses 'of' or 'about', but Spanish requires en. This is a verb + governed preposition pattern learners must memorise.
piensas tú de mí you think of me: pensar de alguien means 'to think of/about someone' in the sense of having an opinion. Note the preposition de here (opinion), versus pensar en (to think about/of in the sense of directing thoughts toward). The explicit tú adds emphasis.
Dime lo que piensas Tell me what you think: lo que is a relative pronoun phrase meaning 'what' (that which). It introduces a noun clause. dime is the imperative of decir with the clitic me attached — a very common construction in commands.
se entrega surrenders itself / gives itself: entregarse (reflexive) means 'to surrender oneself' or 'to give oneself over to something'. Plain entregar means 'to hand over / deliver'. The reflexive se transforms the meaning to a voluntary, emotional self-giving.
me pregunta asks me: preguntar + indirect object pronoun (me) means 'to ask someone'. The pronoun me (indirect object) comes before the verb. This is the standard structure for 'to ask someone something' in Spanish.
qué más por ti yo diera what more I would give for you: diera is the imperfect subjunctive of dar, used here in a hypothetical/wistful sense ('what I would give'). The word order is inverted for poetic effect — in prose it would be 'qué más daría yo por ti'. por ti means 'for you / on your behalf'.
Se despierta wakes up / awakens: despertarse (reflexive) means 'to wake up' (intransitive — the subject wakes itself). Plain despertar means 'to wake someone up' (transitive). The reflexive se is required when the subject is the one waking up.
Se quedó stayed / remained: quedarse (reflexive) means 'to stay' or 'to remain'. Plain quedar has different meanings: 'to be left over', 'to arrange to meet', or 'to suit'. The reflexive se is essential to convey the meaning of staying in a place.
se borra fades away / is erased: borrarse (reflexive) means 'to fade away' or 'to be erased'. Plain borrar means 'to erase' (transitive). The reflexive construction makes the action happen to the subject itself — the silence erases itself, i.e., disappears.
vale la pena is worth it: valer la pena is a fixed idiom meaning 'to be worth it / to be worthwhile'. Literally it means 'to be worth the pain/trouble'. It cannot be deduced word by word — la pena alone means 'sorrow' or 'trouble', but together the phrase means 'worth the effort'.
un amor se entrega a love gives itself: entregarse here is used poetically to mean a love that surrenders or gives itself completely. The reflexive construction with se signals that the subject (amor) is the one performing the action on itself — total self-giving.
un amor te espera a love waits for you: esperar + direct object (te) means 'to wait for someone'. Unlike English, Spanish does not need a preposition after esperar when meaning 'to wait for' — the person waited for is a direct object.
se va multiplicando keeps multiplying / goes on multiplying: irse + gerund is a periphrastic construction emphasising a gradual, progressive increase. It is stronger than the simple present — it conveys the sense of something continuously growing or spreading over time.
Me voy tejiendo I weave myself / I keep weaving myself: irse + gerund (reflexive) here expresses a gradual, ongoing self-transformation. The me signals the reflexive — the speaker is the one being woven. This is a poetic use of the ir + gerund periphrasis to suggest a slow, continuous process.
Qué barbaridad What a thing / How outrageous / Good grief: ¡Qué barbaridad! is a fixed exclamatory phrase expressing surprise, shock, or exasperation. It does not literally mean 'what a barbarity' in modern usage — it functions like 'Good grief!' or 'Can you believe it!' in English.

Vocabulary to learn from “Vale la Pena”

The words the song uses most.

valer is worth verb ·23
la pena pain / sorrow / trouble noun ·23
el amor love noun ·8
decir tell me verb ·6
entregar surrenders / gives itself verb ·6
ver you see verb ·5
pensar I think verb ·4
esperar waits for / awaits verb ·4
el corazón heart noun ·3
ir go / are going verb ·3
estar you are verb ·3
despertar awakens / wakes up verb ·3

Verbs in the song, and the form being sung

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

valer is worth

sung: vale irregular

valer — present tense
yo	valgo
tú	vales
él / ella / usted	vale
nosotros	valemos
vosotros	valéis
ellos / ustedes	valen

decir tell me

sung: dime irregular

decir — present tense
yo	digo
tú	dices
él / ella / usted	dice
nosotros	decimos
vosotros	decís
ellos / ustedes	dicen

entregar surrenders / gives itself

sung: entrega

entregar — present tense
yo	entrego
tú	entregas
él / ella / usted	entrega
nosotros	entregamos
vosotros	entregáis
ellos / ustedes	entregan

ver you see

sung: ves irregular

ver — present tense
yo	veo
tú	ves
él / ella / usted	ve
nosotros	vemos
vosotros	veis
ellos / ustedes	ven

pensar I think

sung: pienso irregular

pensar — present tense
yo	pienso
tú	piensas
él / ella / usted	piensa
nosotros	pensamos
vosotros	pensáis
ellos / ustedes	piensan

Grammar you'll meet in this song

Present61
Imperative6
Future2
Preterite1

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