Fever by Peggy Lee — ESL Song Worksheet | English Plans

FEVER

! Peggy Lee · 1958 !

Listen carefully and fill in the missing words.

    Verse 1
Never know how much I (1) you
Never know how much I (2)
When you put your (3) around me
I get a (4) that's so hard to bear

Chorus
You give me fever
When you (5) me, fever when you hold me (6)
Fever! In the mornin', a-fever all through the night

Verse 2
Sun (7) up the daytime
Moon lights up the night
I light up when you (8) my name
And you know I'm gonna (9) you right

[Chorus]

Verse 3
Everybody's got the fever
That is something you all know
Fever isn't such a new thing
Fever started long ago

Romeo & Juliet
Romeo loved Juliet
Juliet, she felt the same
When he put his arms around her
He said, "Julie, baby, you're my flame"
Thou giveth fever
When we (10), fever with thy flaming youth
Fever! I'm a fire, fever, yeah, I burn forsooth

Captain Smith & Pocahontas
Captain Smith and Pocahontas
Had a very mad (11)
When her daddy tried to kill him
She said, "(12), oh, don't you dare"
He gives me fever
With his kisses, fever when he holds me tight
Fever! I'm his missus, daddy, won't you treat him right?

Final Verse
Now you've listened to my (13)
Here's the point that I have made
Chicks were born to give you fever
Be it Fahrenheit or Centigrade
They give you fever
When you kiss them, fever if you live and learn
Fever! 'Til you sizzle
What a lovely way to (14)
What a lovely way to burn
What a lovely way to burn
What a lovely way to burn
  

Fever

Peggy Lee · 1958

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Song Worksheets

Definition Match

Match each word (1-6) to its correct definition (A-F). Write the letter on the line.

1. fever

2. flame

3. affair

4. sizzle

5. missus

6. forsooth

A. a secret romantic relationship

B. high body temperature; strong excitement

C. to make a hissing sound like cooking

D. old word meaning 'truly' or 'indeed'

E. informal word for 'wife'

F. fire; someone you love passionately

The Missing Verse

Write one more verse for this song. Match the style, rhythm, and emotional tone.

Create your own historical love story like Romeo & Juliet or Captain Smith & Pocahontas. Use the same pattern and include the word 'fever' at least twice.

Did you know?

Read these facts about the song. Which one surprises you most?

🎵Peggy Lee's version of 'Fever' became more famous than the original 1956 version by Little Willie John.
⭐The song mentions real historical couples like Romeo and Juliet, and Captain John Smith and Pocahontas.
🎸Peggy Lee used minimal instrumentation - just bass and drums - to create the sultry, intimate sound.
📀The word 'fever' appears over 20 times in the song, making it one of the most repeated words in popular music.
🎤The song reached number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won Peggy Lee a Grammy nomination in 1959.

Discussion & analysis

Discuss each question with your partner.

1What does 'fever' represent in this song besides illness?
2Why do you think the singer uses historical love stories?

3Have you ever felt 'fever' for someone? How did it feel?
4Is love really like a fever that you can't control?

🛑 Play It! — Stop!

Teacher gives a category (e.g. bands beginning with B). Class splits into two teams. Teams take turns — one answer each, back and forth. First team to hesitate or repeat loses the round.