Waste of Time
No Fun at All Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

Let down with a sympathetic promise
Never to be seen again
Got down for a fraction of a second
Now I'm fine

I don't care 'cause I never stood a chance to me
I don't know why it happens all the time
But I never have the time to grieve

Can you appreciate the life we left behind
Or was it just a waste of time?
I could abbreviate my life down to a line
I could abbreviate it now

United, so you're saying sayonara
Taking every chance you get
Checkmate, it's the end of the story
No surprise

The turn down was the obvious response
Yeah, the one I could anticipate
I so wish you would leave me all alone
But the repetition never ends





Can you appreciate the life we left behind?
Can you appreciate it now?

Overall Meaning

The song "Waste of Time" by No Fun at All describes a situation where the singer has been let down by someone who made a sympathetic promise to him but then disappeared, leaving him feeling rejected and frustrated. He admits that he never thought he had a chance with this person and doesn't know why this kind of thing happens to him so often. In the chorus, the singer asks if his previous life was just a waste of time, whether he can appreciate what was left behind, or if he can abbreviate his life down to one line. The song also refers to the end of a relationship with the lines "United, so you're saying sayonara / Taking every chance you get / Checkmate, it's the end of the story / No surprise."


The overall tone of "Waste of Time" is melancholic and reflective. It seems like the singer is going through a difficult period where he's questioning his past and wondering if he's wasted too much time pursuing things that haven't worked out. The repetition of certain phrases throughout the song reinforces this sense of frustration and feeling stuck in a repetitive cycle of disappointment. The chorus is especially poignant, as the singer is questioning whether his life has any meaning or value, or if everything he's done up until this point has been pointless.


Line by Line Meaning

Let down with a sympathetic promise
Disappointed by a promise that seemed to understand my feelings


Never to be seen again
Never to receive that same level of sympathy


Got down for a fraction of a second
Felt low for a moment


Now I'm fine
But I'm okay now


I don't care 'cause I never stood a chance to me
I'm not upset because I never expected anything in the first place


I don't know why it happens all the time
I don't understand why this keeps happening


But I never have the time to grieve
But I never have the time to properly process it


Can you appreciate the life we left behind
Do you value the experiences we had in the past?


Or was it just a waste of time?
Or was it all for nothing?


I could abbreviate my life down to a line
I could summarize my entire life in one sentence


I could abbreviate it now
I could do it right at this moment


United, so you're saying sayonara
We were together, but now you're saying goodbye


Taking every chance you get
Taking every opportunity to leave


Checkmate, it's the end of the story
It's game over, the story is done


No surprise
Not unexpected


The turn down was the obvious response
Being rejected was the expected answer


Yeah, the one I could anticipate
Yes, the one I expected


I so wish you would leave me all alone
I really want to be left alone


But the repetition never ends
But this situation keeps happening again and again


Can you appreciate the life we left behind?
Do you value the experiences we had in the past?


Can you appreciate it now?
Do you recognize its worth at this moment?




Lyrics © THE BICYCLE MUSIC COMPANY
Written by: CHRISTER JOHANSSON, INGEMAR JANSSON, KJELL RAMSTEDT, MIKAEL DANIELSSON, STEFAN NEUMAN

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found

More Versions