Milord is a 1959 French classic by Georges Moustaki, made famous by Édith Piaf. Also called Ombre de la Rue (“Shadow of the Street”), it tells of a courtesan addressing a wealthy Englishman. Below are the lyrics, English translation, and a line-by-line breakdown.
📖 Song overview
Like many of Piaf’s songs, Milord speaks of love and heartbreak. The singer, a working girl in the port, calls herself “l’ombre de la rue” (the shadow of the street) while admiring Milord, a wealthy man who has never noticed her. In the end, he leaves on his boat in sadness (“Quand le navire s’en va … L’amour, ça fait pleurer”), while she laughs and urges him to smile and sing.
🎶 Listen to “Milord”
Milord – Lyrics with English Translation
Allez, venez, Milord
Vous asseoir à ma table
Il fait si froid, dehors
Ici c’est confortable
Laissez-vous faire, Milord
Et prenez bien vos aises
Vos peines sur mon cœur
Et vos pieds sur une chaise
Je vous connais, Milord
Vous n’m’avez jamais vue
Je n’suis qu’une fille du port
Qu’une ombre de la rue
Come on, Milord
Sit down at my table
It’s so cold outside
It’s so comfortable here
Relax, Milord
Take it easy
Your troubles on my heart
and your feet on a chair
I know you, Milord
You have never seen me
I’m just a girl from the port
Just a shadow in the street
Pourtant j’vous ai frôlé
Quand vous passiez hier
Vous n’étiez pas peu fier
Dame! Le ciel vous comblait
Votre foulard de soie
Flottant sur vos épaules
Vous aviez le beau rôle
On aurait dit le roi
Vous marchiez en vainqueur
Au bras d’une demoiselle
Mon Dieu! Qu’elle était belle
J’en ai froid dans le cœur
Yet I brushed by you
When you were passing by yesterday
You weren’t proud
God! Heaven made you perfect
Your silk scarf
Floating on your shoulders
You were so beautiful
You could have been the king
You were walking as a winner
In a woman’s arms
My God! She was beautiful
My heart is cold
Allez, venez, Milord
Vous asseoir à ma table
Il fait si froid, dehors
Ici c’est confortable
Laissez-vous faire, Milord
Et prenez bien vos aises
Vos peines sur mon cœur
Et vos pieds sur une chaise
Je vous connais, Milord
Vous n’m’avez jamais vueJe n’suis qu’une fille du port
Qu’une ombre de la rue
Come on, Milord
Sit down at my table
It’s so cold outside
It’s so comfortable here
Relax, Milord
Take it easy
Your troubles on my heart
and your feet on a chair
I know you, Milord
You have never seen me
I’m just a girl from the port
Just a shadow in the street
Dire qu’il suffit parfois
Qu’il y ait un navire
Pour que tout se déchire
Quand le navire s’en va
Il emmenait avec lui
La douce aux yeux si tendres
Qui n’a pas su comprendre
Qu’elle brisait votre vie
L’amour, ça fait pleurer
Saying it’s enough sometimes
That there is a ship
To make everything fall apart
When the boat goes away
It brings with him
The sweetheart so tender in his eyes
Who didn’t know to understand
That she ruined your life
Love makes you cry
Comme quoi l’existence
Ça vous donne toutes les chances
Pour les reprendre après
Saying that life
Gives you all the opportunities
To take them back after
Allez, venez, Milord!
Vous avez l’air d’un môme!
Laissez-vous faire, Milord
Venez dans mon royaume
Je soigne les remords
Je chante la romance
Je chante les milords
Qui n’ont pas eu de chance!
Come on, Milord!
You look like a kid
Relax, Milord
Come into my kingdom
I treat the remorse
I sing romance
I sing to my lords
Who were not lucky
Regardez-moi, Milord
Vous n’m’avez jamais vue
Mais vous pleurez, Milord?
Ça j’l’aurais jamais cru
Look at me, Milord
You’ve never seen me
But you cry, Milord
I would have never seen that
Eh ben, voyons, Milord!
Souriez-moi, Milord!
Mieux qu’ça! Un p’tit effort
Voilà, c’est ça!
Allez, riez, Milord!
Allez, chantez, Milord!
Well, let’s see, Milord
Smile at me, Milord
Better than that! A little effort
There, that’s it!
Come on, laugh, Milord!
Come on, sing, Milord!
Pa lalalalala
Lalalala lala
Lalalala lala
Lalalala lala
La lalalalala
Mais oui, dansez, Milord!
Pa lalalalala
Lalalala lala
Ta lalalalala
Bravo Milord
Palalala lala
Best, dance, Milord!
Very good, Milord!
Lalalala lala
Palalala lala
Encore Milord
Palalala lala
Lalalala lala
Palalala lala
Again, Milord!
Pa la la la lala
Lalalala lala
Lalalala lala
Ta pa lalalalala
✏️ Grammar and vocabulary notes
In this section, I’ve hand-picked vocabulary and grammar from the song that’s especially useful for intermediate learners.
⚡ Song title
Milord comes from the English “my lord” and in French refers to an upper-class gentleman. In Piaf’s song, it addresses a wealthy man, highlighting the contrast between his world and hers.
🗣 Sentence Structures & Grammar
« Allez, venez, Milord, vous asseoir à ma table »
👉 Come on, Milord, sit down at my table.
- Allez literally means “go” but is often used like “come on.”
- Venez vous asseoir = “come sit down.” S’asseoir is reflexive, with vous as the pronoun (yourself).
« Il fait si froid, dehors »
👉 It’s so cold outside.
- Il fait froid = “it’s cold” (weather expression).
- Si here means “so” (synonym: tellement).
- Dehors = “outside.”
« Vous n’m’avez jamais vue »
👉 You’ve never seen me.
- Ne…jamais = “never.” (see negation rules)
- Note the elision: n’ before a vowel.
« Je n’suis qu’une fille du port, qu’une ombre de la rue »
👉 I’m only a girl from the port, just a shadow in the street.
- Ne…que = “only.”
- The imagery “ombre de la rue” (shadow of the street) became a nickname for the song.
« Quand vous passiez hier, vous n’étiez pas peu fier »
👉 When you were passing yesterday, you weren’t so modest (you were quite proud).
- Both verbs in imparfait: passiez, étiez.
« Dire qu’il suffit parfois, qu’il y ait un navire »
👉 Saying it’s enough sometimes, that there is a ship.
- Suffire = “to be enough” (Ça suffit! = Enough!).
- Qu’il y ait = subjunctive of il y a (there is).
🔤 Verb Forms & Tenses
« Laissez-vous faire, Milord, et prenez bien vos aises »
👉 Relax, Milord, take it easy.
- Laissez-vous faire = “let yourself go.”
- Prenez vos aises = idiom “make yourself comfortable.”
« Vous avez perdu votre sourire »
👉 You’ve lost your smile.
- Example of passé composé: avoir + past participle (perdu).
« On aurait dit le roi »
👉 One could have said you were the king.
- Conditionnel passé: aurait dit.
« Pour que tout se déchire, quand le navire s’en va »
👉 So that everything falls apart, when the boat leaves.
- Se déchirer = “to be torn apart.”
- S’en aller = “to go away.”
« Il emmenait avec lui, la douce aux yeux si tendres »
👉 He took with him the sweetheart with such tender eyes.
- Emmener = “to take (someone) along.”
- Douce here = “sweetheart” (noun, not just adjective).
📚 Idioms & Natural Expressions
« Vos peines sur mon cœur »
👉 Your troubles on my heart. → Loosely, “Let me carry your pain.”
« J’en ai froid dans le cœur »
👉 My heart feels cold. → Expression of hurt or disillusionment.
« L’amour, ça fait pleurer »
👉 Love makes you cry. → Notice ça fait = “that makes.”
« Comme quoi l’existence »
👉 Such is life / saying that life… → Comme quoi introduces a lesson drawn from experience.
« Ça vous donne toutes les chances, pour les reprendre après »
👉 It gives you all the opportunities, only to take them back after.
- Chance in French often means “opportunity” or “luck,” not just “chance.”
🗣 Grammar Highlights to Notice
- Use of imperatives with formal vous (Asseyez-vous, souriez-moi).
- Alternation between passé composé and imparfait for past narration.
- Subjunctive mood in qu’il y ait.
- Idiomatic negations: ne…jamais, ne…que.
- Frequent reflexive verbs (s’asseoir, s’en aller, se déchirer).
❤️ More Édith Piaf Songs You’ll Love!
👉 Discover all of Édith Piaf’s classics here »
🔗 See all my French song lyrics and translations »
