This is from the song Rise Against - Savior:
It kills me not to know this, but I've all but just forgotten ...
I am curious, is it some colloquial phrase, or is meaningless.
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4Please explain what research you've done and why that doesn't help.– TrevorDCommented May 6, 2016 at 23:00
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1Lyrics can have different interpretations. It's difficult to give a precise answer and therefore this question is not fit for ELU.– NVZ ♦Commented May 7, 2016 at 3:45
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2 Answers
It means that he has almost completely forgotten.
all but:
very nearly
Source: Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary
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1How do you know? Or, more precisely, how do readers here know whether you're correct? Please edit some corroborating evidence (e.g. dictionary definitions) into your answer; if you reference a third party authority, it's good practice to name them and link back to them.– Dan BronCommented May 7, 2016 at 12:20
Fortunately I am fond of this song, so I will attempt to assist you. Here is the rest of the verse it is from:
It kills me not to know this but I've all but just forgotten
What the color of her eyes were and her scars or how she got them
As the telling signs of age rain down a single tear is dropping
Through the valleys of an aging face that this world has forgotten
And then some key words from the chorus:
That's when she said I don't hate you boy
I just want to save you while there's still something left to save (whoa, whoa)
That's when I told her I love you girl
But I'm not the answer for the questions that you still have (whoa, whoa)
So it is quite a sad song. The song writer and the girl he is singing about have been subject to a misfortune where they have had to separate. They were both suffering from something where they needed 'saving', and both of them wanted to be each other's 'saviour' (hence the song's title).
Now, the line that you pointed out, is most likely referring to how much time has passed since this incident and how he has began to forgot all these details about her ('the colour of her eyes', 'her scars' etc.). It suggests that he is regretting this ('it kills me not to know') and wants to go back in time and change things.
