12 Useful and Practical Expressions from Song Titles

Songs are a fantastic and exciting tool to learn a language. They contain myriads of useful expressions so that in your everyday use of English they may very well come in handy. So, be prepared to be amazed, and let’s get cracking!

Blaze of glory

Song: Blaze Of Glory (From "Young Guns II" Soundtrack) (1990), on the album Jon Bon Jovi by Jon Bon Jovi.

Meaning: If you go out in a blaze of glory, you do something very exceptional and noticeable at the end of your career, you end it with a lot of success, admiration, and praise.

Example:

He won the FIFA World Cup as the team captain, then finished his career, going out in a blaze of glory.

Walk in circles

Song: Walking in circles (2009), on the album Out of Ashes by Dead by Sunrise.

Meaning: If you walk in circles you do something continuously and routinely without achieving anything but worthless repetition.

Example:

I can’t find a way around this issue, I’m stuck, just walking in circles.

Break the habit

Song: Breaking the habit (2003), on the album Meteora by Linkin Park.

Meaning: If you break the habit, you stop doing something that is destructive or damaging for you.

Example:

I’m uncontrollably addicted to gambling, I’m struggling to break this habit.

Sky is the limit

Song: Sky is the limit (2016), on the album Less is more by Lost Frequencies (feat. Jake Reeze).

Meaning: The expression ‘sky is the limit’ is used mostly in spoken language to say that there is no limit to what you can do, take up, reach, achieve.

Example:

Don’t be afraid of taking up this challenge, the sky’s the limit!

All the rage

Song: All the rage (2016), on the album All the Rage by Allie X.

Meaning: very trendy and fashionable (informal).

Example:

Tattoos have obviously become all the rage among teens.

In the wake of something

Song: In the wake of your leave (2022), on the album In the wake of your leave by Gang of Youths.

Meaning: If something (bad situations, in particular) takes place in the wake of something else, it happens after and often for that reason.

Example:

He had to go off the grid for a while in the wake of the recent scandal.

On a roll

Song: On A Roll (2019), on the album On a Roll by Ashley O

Meaning: If you are on a roll, you are experiencing a period of triumph or good fortune.

Example:

They’ve been on a roll since winning the Eurovision Song Contest.

On the edge

Song: Livin’ on the edge (1994), on the album Big Ones by Aerosmith.

Meaning: If you are on the edge, you act in a way that may seem that you’re going crazy.

Example:

Last month I felt completely worn out, I was on the edge.

Be out of your mind

Song: Out of my mind (2004), on the album Back to Bedlam by James Blunt.

Meaning: crazy, stupid, behaving in a crazy way (informal).

Example:

You must have been out of your mind to invest in this failing business.

Hands down

Song: Hands down (1994), on the album A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar by Dashboard Confessional

Meaning: easily, effortlessly

Example:

If he happened to take part in elections, he’d win hands down.

Take it or leave it

Song: Take it or leave it (2001), on the album Is This It by The Strokes

Meaning: if you say to somebody that they can either take it or leave it you imply that they can accept it or not, you just don’t care.

Example:

Sometimes people tend to change their minds, you can either take it or leave it.

On the face of it

Song: On the face of it (2005), on the album S/T by The Evens

Meaning: you can use ‘on the face of it’ to describe how something seems when first considered, but then things may very well change, it’s not clear yet.

Example:

On the face of it, the play was a triumph, but it hardly made a pretty penny.