It might not have been like this

Question

from the lyrics of If I needed someone by the Beatles:Had you come some other day  Then it might not have been like thisWhat does it mean exactly? Is the "not" reffered to "might" or to "have been".If it were a future possibility, would it be?1) If you will come another day, it might be different from this2) If you will come another day, it will be different from thisSecond question, if the asnwer is #1, how would you change the Beatles' lyrics to express the meaning #2? and the other way round too. (I mean, just by changing the sentence as little as possible)

Cool Breeze · Accepted Answer

AnonymousWhat does it mean exactly? Is the "not" reffered to "might" or to "have been".

Not makes might have been negative. Not is usually placed after a defective/modal auxiliary.

To refer to a future occurrance, I would say:

Should you come some other day / another day

It might not be like this (Or: Things might not be like this)

If followed by will doesn't work in the intended way.

CB

Anonymous · Answer

thanks a lot, so is "might not have been " like "could not have been"?

how would you say that it might have been different?

is it possible to say "it might have been not like this"?

Dimsumexpress · Answer

AnonymousHad you come some other day
Then it might not have been like this

I would say this looks very much like the 3rd conditional structure which means: If you had come at different time, things might/ may not have been like this. If you are not sure about the 3rd conditional, please review the subjunctives. This is one of the biggest area of confusion in English in my opinion because there are guidelines in usages but also much of the usage depends on how the speaker wishes to express himself. So there are two criteria one needs to consider.

Anonymous1) If you will come another day, it might be different from this
2) If you will come another day, it will be different from this

I think the core meaning of the two sentences is understood but as far as subjunctive usage is concerned, it can be just about anything. As the previous post suggested, "Should you come another day...It would have been different " is also a possibility " as much as " if you were to come another day, it would have been different". That said, lyrics may not be a very helpful source of grammar.

It might not have been like this

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