Hold my hand while you cut me down
It had only just begun but now it's over now
And you're in the heat of moments with your heart playing up cold
I'm between the middle watching hastiness unfold
On my eyes you were smiling in the spotlight dancing with the night
The night fell off your mind

I'm tired of trying
Your teasing ain't enough
Fed up of biding your time
When I don't get nothing back
And for what? And for what? And for what?
When I don't get nothing back
Boy, I'm tired

Where'd you go when you stayed behind?
I looked up and inside down and outside only to find
A double taking punching, hard and laughing at my smile
I get closer you obviously prefer her

I'm tired of trying
Your teasing ain't enough
Fed up of biding your time
When I don't get nothing back
And for what? And for what? And for what?
When I don't get nothing back

Boy, I'm tired of trying
Your teasing ain't enough
Fed up of biding your time
When I don't get nothing back
And for what? And for what? And for what?
When I don't get nothing back
Boy, I'm tired

(I should have known)

"Never mind" said your open arms
I couldn't help believe it tricked me back into them
Even though

I'm tired of trying
Your teasing ain't enough
Fed up of biding your time
When I don't get nothing back
And for what? And for what? And for what?
When I don't get nothing back

Boy, I'm tired of trying
Your teasing ain't enough
Fed up of biding your time
When I don't get nothing back
(I'm fed up of) And for what? (Biding your time)
And for what? And for what?
When I don't get nothing back
Boy, I'm tired


Lyrics submitted by paulieboy, edited by Qubezero

Tired Lyrics as written by Francis Anthony White Adele Laurie Blue Adkins

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Tired song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

10 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +1
    General Comment

    To me, she's saying she's tired and fed up of this guy's teasing, and that he clearly prefers someone else so why not go off with her BUT I don't think she really means it, she just wants to mean it - I think she's saying that she realises exactly what she's doing, buying his time and getting nothing in return, but when he's there with open arms, she knows she'll end up in them. I know exactly how that feels! So that's what this song means to me. I could well be wrong.

    atikinon April 27, 2008   Link
  • +1
    Lyric Correction

    hold my hand while you cut me down it had only just begun but now it's over now and your in the heat of moments with your heart playing up cold I'm between the middle watching hastiness unfold on my eyes you were smiling in the spotlight dancing with the night when I fell off your mind

    I'm tired of trying your teasing ain't enough fed up of biding your time when I don't get nothing back and for what and for what and for what when I don't get nothing back Oi, I'm tired

    where'd you go when you stayed behind I looked up and inside down and outside only to find a double taking punching heartache laughing at my smile I get closer you obviously prefer her

    I'm tired of trying your teasing ain't enough fed up of biding your time when I don't get nothing back and for what and for what and for what when I don't get nothing back Oi, I'm tired of trying your teasing ain't enough fed up of biding your time when I don't get nothing back and for what and for what and for what when I don't get nothing back oi, I'm tired

    never mind said your open arms I couldn't help the leap that tripped me back into them even though

    I'm tired of trying your teasing ain't enough fed up of biding your time when I don't get nothing back and for what and for what and for what when I don't get nothing back oi, I'm tired of trying your teasing ain't enough fed up of biding your time when I don't get nothing back and for what and for what and for what when I don't get nothing back oi, I'm tired

    tearosemoonon July 09, 2011   Link
  • +1
    Memory

    I might have appreciated this song more a little around the time I flirted a lot with this guy I really liked, and he just kept teasing me and pushing me away, and telling others I was a bitch and ugly when I was absent from school.

    But look who took it with pride? Yeap, me. Feels much better being over him than in love with him.

    NyanConverse28on August 15, 2013   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Yeah, I think that's about it. She's fed up of the relationship, of him wanting to be/being with someone else.

    I love that little instrumental part halfway through this song. The strings are remarkable.

    Mariosluv6on June 06, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I concur with your assessment of the instrumental, Mariosluv6. It's quite lovely.

    arigginon June 26, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Another song about being led on; she's tired of trying, buying his time, giving and giving when she gets nothing back and he obviously is into another girl. She's not going to be used anymore.

    missmeon August 16, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    There's some missing words here. This needs to be corrected.

    lauraboo438on June 01, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I'm pretty sure the lyrics say "biding your time" instead of "buying your time." She's fed up of him biding his time because he never makes a move.

    LittleGreen5on January 27, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    "never mind" said your open arms, i couldn't help the leap that tripped me back into them.......

    whedonist21on November 18, 2010   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation

    The way I see it, the guy doesn't realise he's leading her on, he thinks he's just being friendly, and she's just trying to push something that is never gonna happen. The first couple of lines really do it for, 'Hold my hand while you cut me down'. The guy's trying to be nice, not realising that it's the worst thing he could do to her.

    I really like the line, 'I looked up and inside down and outside,' and not just because it flows really well. The list of places she searches reflects her repeated attempts to curry his favour, but to no avail.

    rhysepooson April 10, 2017   Link

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

More Featured Meanings

Album art
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines: "Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet" So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other: "I had all and then most of you" Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart "Some and now none of you" Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship. This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Album art
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Album art
Holiday
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday". I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Album art
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
Album art
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it. “I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.