Might-Have-Been
/ˌmaɪtˈhævˌbiːn/noun
A person or thing with unrealized potential; something that could have happened but did not.
Did you know?This is an idiomatic phrase from modal grammar, not an ancient occult compound, but it taps into the eerie power of English modal verbs to frame unreal possibilities as if they were alternate destinies.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
miht
“power, strength, ability”
Old English
OE
habban
“to have, hold, possess”
Old English
OE
bēon
“to be, exist”
Middle English
ME
mighte have ben
“could have been; was possible but unrealized”
Modern English
English
might-have-been
“an unrealized possibility or person”