What does this saying mean?

Question

For all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these, "It might have been."

sorry if i don't get it easily...i'm just very sad right now and i looked for quotes and i got this...what does it really mean?

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

im guessing it means.. i dont know how to put it other then

how your life would be if you made a different decision

and its sad to think about what your life could be

Answer 2

The first part is a really complicated way of saying "of all words". Then it says that the saddest words ever said are "It might have been", meaning that the saddest thing is when you miss a chance because you were afraid to try it.

Answer 3

What it means is that the absolute pinnacle of human sadness is looking back on our potential, the "It might have been" and realizing that we have failed. It's saying that looking back at all the bad times and saying to ourselves "I could have been a lawyer, a doctor, a pilot..." is the ultimate source of depression, misery, and sadness in humanity.

Answer 4

"tongue" = spoken / "pen" = written / Basically: out of all the sad words that are both spoken and written, the saddest are "'It might have been."' The quote is about regrets. The 'what ifs' of our lives. To this author "It might have been" are the saddest words of all.

I like that quote. It sounds poetical and right. Depressing yes, but still good.

~fayquest

Answer 5

It's saying that the saddest words one says or writes are words of regret.

Answer 6

It means that someone 500 years ago felt that the saddest thing was to have missed some opportunity in life.