Secret so sorry that I forgot.
Secret secret We're all bound to forget.
I was worried I might be rude to you,
So worried that I was.
It's a lie to serve the truth and I'm still guilty.
I missed. So be it.

Everywhere everything you ever touched.
Cutting in won't do it. There's nothing to it.
You were sorry that I was alone,
So sorry that you run away.
Putting it on me but you already knew it,
It never meant a thing. So be it.

I can't understand this at all.
I can't pronounce this at all.

These are different matters,
These are uncertain feelings,
These should never be discussed here,
So keep it to yourself.


Lyrics submitted by let it fall

Hated Because Of Great Qualities song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

8 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +4
    Memory

    I came across the song about 9 months ago. It's just so beautiful that I kept listening to it on the youtube. I never knew what the song meant, and I couldn't relate the lyrics with the song title. One day, in a sad afternoon after a fight with my boyfriend, the song just kept spinning in my head. And suddenly, I realized what the song meant.

    "Secret so sorry that I forgot. Secret secret We're all bound to forget. I was worried I might be rude to you, So worried that I was. It's a lie to serve the truth and I'm still guilty. I missed. So be it."

    The "secret" is, the man does not love her. Deep down, the girl knows it; but she keeps lying to herself that the boy does love her. The fact that the boy does not love her is being kept like a secret in her heart. She doesn't want to make the secret public since that would mean to end her relationship with the boy.

    "Secret so sorry that I forgot" sometimes she feels that the boy really does not treat her right, and feels realy sad about that, but then she reminds herself that "yes, the truth is, the boy doesn't love me anymore." She knows it, and that's the little secret that she keeps deep inside her fragile heart. So at this point she realizes that she shouldn't be demanding anything from her boyfriend, she's sorry that she almost "forgets" about the lie that she has been telling herself, the lie that she has to tell herself all the time so as to keep the relationship going.

    Realizing that she has to keep it as a secret, she does not blame the boy that he doesn't treat her right anymore; instead, she apologizes for the accusation she made to her boyfriend previously, in hope of sweeping all his bad things under the rug, nervously saying that it's her who was to blame: "I'm sorry I might be rude to you, so sorry that I was"

    But "It's a lie to serve the truth" and therefore "I'm still guilty"

    So the second stanza I guess is more or less about the empty words that the boy said to lazily pacify the girl. He didn't really mean what he said.

    And in the last stanza, "these should never be discussed here" who is right and who is wrong should never be discussed openly anymore if they wish to keep the decadent relationship with the brittle little lie.

    And I suppose that's why the song title is called "hated becasue of great qualities". The man does not really hate her, just does not find himself love her anymore. That's why he is angry and seems to loathe her whenever he is "complained" by the girl.In fact, the girl is the one who has the points (being fair and honest about the situation they are in), the man cannot defend himself so he appears to hate the girl.

    Of course, it's just my interpretation after all :]

    turquoise904on March 16, 2009   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    I really love the way Kazu sings, especially in this song. What a brilliant title, too. Anyone have any idea what this is about?

    Boournson May 28, 2007   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    This song's just so... Beautiful... I get lost in it sometimes just thinking....

    it is truely the songs of songs

    rock the system!!on June 23, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    do you ever just focus on yourself? i don't know...i like how this band wasn't ever popular yet still very important to me...this song rocks more than your grandma.

    phlameon March 10, 2003   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    yes it does.

    IAmAClicheon June 14, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    This song is hauntingly beautiful.

    le_delugeon July 15, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    simply grasp all my attention

    toxiccurseon October 11, 2008   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation

    I think it’s as simple as “I accidentally revealed a secret and to be honest I’m not really sure I deserved that burden isn’t he first place but I’m sorry for the damage I’ve caused”.\n\nI always wanted to make a fan clip with various scenarios, like young man being caught cross dressing erotically and some people having an affair

    mushroomfaton February 01, 2022   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
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version. Great version of a great song,
Album art
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
Album art
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
Album art
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.