She'll let you in her house
If you come knockin' late at night
She'll let you in her mouth
If the words you say are right

If you pay the price
She'll let you deep inside
But there's a secret garden she hides

She'll let you in her car
To go drivin' round
She'll let you into the parts of herself
That'll bring you down

She'll let you in herheart
If you got a hammer and a vise
But into her secret garden, don't think twice

You've gone a million miles
How far'd you get
To that place where You can't remember
And you can't forget

She'll lead you down a path
There'll be tenderness in the air
She'll let you come just far enough
So you know she's really there
She'll look at you and smile
And her eyes will say
She's got a secret garden
Where everything you want
Where everything you need
Will always stay
A million miles away


Lyrics submitted by oofus, edited by juliemv1959

Secret Garden Lyrics as written by Bruce Springsteen

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Secret Garden song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

72 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +12
    General Comment

    When I heard this song, I first just thought it was another love song. But after listening to it, I realized that it said much more. To me it's talking about that little part of all of us, that, no matter what, will always be ours alone. A place that only we can reach and no one else. There's always that secret place deep inside us that makes us tick, makes us who we are, and we are the only ones who can get there. The people we love may recognize it and see it, but that won't fully understand it.

    insatiableon June 06, 2002   Link
  • +10
    Song Meaning

    Morons! This song, like most of Bruce's, is not about prostitutes or sluts, etc. He's filling you in on a basic fact. No matter how well you think you know her; there's a part of her; her 'Secret Garden'; where you will never penetrate. She will not tell you, or let on, but that's that's how it it is. Married 10-20 years, still; you will never enter the "secret garden". Don't like it? TS. Think about becoming Gay. Otherwise; learn to live w/ it. It's as true as the sunrise. Those with alternate theories; wait till your 40 years or older, otherwise, shut your pie holes.

    tbmtbon July 30, 2011   Link
  • +6
    General Comment

    I think that the great thing about songs and song lyrics is that while the song writer may have their own idea about the song while they are writing it, everyone else gets to interpret it in their own way. It wouldn't be very much fun to listen to songs with such great lyrics and be like 'oh those don't mean anything, he's just talking about a prostitute; I saw it in an interview'. It's so much more fun to 'guess' the meaning. :) For me, I think this song is about a girl who has suffered a lot of pain in her life, someone who lost someone she loved. And because of that she has a hard time opening her heart to love. When she smiles, it's sad, because she hurts, and people's love hurts her. She hides her pain, trying to let people in, but she'll never truly let anyone in. She can't do this because no matter how far she goes, or how long its been, the pain, the sadness, is there with her all the time. She can't forget the pain, but it hurts her too much to remember everything, all the details that caused the pain. (Hence the line, You've gone a million miles How far'd you get To that place where you can't remember And you can't forget, which I think is amazing). I think anyone who has lost someone they loved in tragic circumstances will understand that. As for the secret garden, I think that's where she keeps her memories of whoever she lost, good or bad, about their life or their death, and they are just too personal, as some memories are, to explain or show to another person. Anyway, that's just what I get from the song, I don't think its a love song really. Sorry this is super long :)

    joker204on September 01, 2006   Link
  • +4
    General Comment

    I just love this song. I think it is absolutely amazing and though bruce springsteen has many many wonderful songs, this is my favourite. I think it is about a man falling in love with a woman who, no matter how hard he tries, always keeps her distance and guards her privacy with her life...he realizes that he could spend forever trying to get through to her ("you've gone a million miles, how far'd you get") but that he never can get to that part of herself that she hides away. Its just so bittersweet - I love it!!

    WishYouWereHereon July 29, 2002   Link
  • +4
    General Comment

    In his book titled "Songs" he wrote that Secret Garden "was darkly erotic and centered around the mysteries that remain between partners, even the closest of relationships"

    So for those of you who aren't willing to understand that songs can pertain to more than just prostitution, or love, there you go! heres the link if you like: springsteenlyrics.com/lyrics/s/secretgarden.php

    basinger1987on May 10, 2009   Link
  • +4
    My Interpretation

    I don't think anyone has listened to this song the way I have and might be because I just experienced a break up that fits this.

    The girl and the guy in this song, they care very deeply for one another. However the female has things that are troubling her from her past that nobody knows about her and she's afraid to tell anyone in case they judge her poorly.

    The guy however loves her with all her heart and is like no other guy she has ever had cross her path whether relationship or any other sense. He just wants her to know this but she is too scared to be vulnerable and puts up walls to protect from more pain that she only knows of in her "secret garden".

    She isn't a "bitch" or mean at all, she is hurting from lots of pain from her past and she wants to love the guy and will try forcing herself to do so even if it is hard. Though when she tries she breaks down thinking back to the pain of the past and hides away from him again.

    They'll never get to be together in the end because shes scared, even though he is the exact kind of guy that she needs forever.

    PonderThison July 30, 2012   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    if you come up with an explanation for these lyrics, then you need to be able to justify it with more than a few carefully selected lines.

    'into the secret garden dont think twice.'

    prostitute?

    'youve gone a million miles.....' 'there be tenderness in the air' 'lead you down the path' prostitute?

    you get my point. lyrics are often deliberately ambiguous, so to work out a true meaning will be usually difficult.

    to me the song seems to make me think of true intimate love as opposed to love that is shallow and worthless. i dont say this is the intended meaning, but it is where i go when i hear it. even when we add our comments the box says 'what does this song mean to you'...not 'explain this and prove its meaning'.

    me4now777on March 24, 2006   Link
  • +2
    Song Meaning

    This song is entirely based on what it is and what it means to fall in love with a woman. How she will do anything for you, "into her car...into her heart..just far enough so you know shes really there"... but in the end there so many depths and levels to a every woman where her "Secret Garden" is kept that you will never see, even when she "leads down the path" she will "look into your eyes" and you will still know that her secret garden will always remain "a million miles away".

    Its a part of her you'll never really completely know about, as its just hers and hers alone.

    CarbonChrison August 17, 2012   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    I think it's about a girl, who seems to be absolutely perfect, everything the guys has dreamt of, but in the end she's just as insecure as anyone, she just hides it better. Deep down inside she is scared or completely opening up to him, although she knows he loves him truly, her heart refuses to believe it, so, she keeps leading him on, making him think that she will open up to him, but just in a split second she runs away again(but she knows he will always follow, so she just keeps doing that)

    Chamigaon December 19, 2004   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    This song is incredibly romantic. The tune at the beginning is kind of haunting; it's so pure and it gets me every time.

    This song can be interpreted in various ways; the prostitute theory as well as the theory about a girl who has this place inside of her she can only enter... those are both reasonable. The power of music is that we can all interpret it differently.

    Ashley765on September 10, 2006   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
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him. There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Album art
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Album art
Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere. In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
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.
Album art
Midnight
Ed Sheeran
“Midnight” is a song about finding a love that is so true that it provides a calming feeling through every storm. Ed Sheeran reflects on his good fortunes in landing someone with such peace and support and speaks of not fearing the dark days because he knows they’ll all end in the safety nets of her arms. “Well, good morning there / What a way to start the day / With everything laid bare,” Ed Sheeran sings in the first verse, enthusiastic to be waking up beside his woman. He apologizes for missing her calls in the second verse and promises to return them because for him, speaking to her is the most important thing. “Well, I get lost inside my head / In this chaos, you’re my calm / And I will find my feet again / ‘Cause еven the worst days of my life will always еnd / At midnight in your arms,” sings Ed Sheeran in the chorus, revelling in his good luck.