Future time

1. FUTURE TIME
Grammar Explanation

2. WE USE FOUR VERB FORMS TO EXPRESS SIMPLE FUTURE
TIME.
• We will take the midterm exam in March. (Future with “will”)
• We are going to study modals next week. (Future with “going to”)
• We are studying modals next week. (Future with present
progressive)
• The semester ends in May. (Future with simple present)

3. FUTURE WITH “WILL”: AFFIRMATIVE,
NEGATIVE, QUESTION AND SHORT ANSWER
FORMS
Explanation Examples
affirmative We will take the midterm exam in March.
negative We will not do all the work in the textbook. =
We won’t do all the work in the textbook.
question Will the exam be open book?
short answer Yes, it will.
OR
No, it won’t.

4. ALL FOUR OF THESE FORMS ARE ABOUT A TIME IN THE
FUTURE.
Past X X future
now

5. FUTURE WITH “GOING TO” HAS THE SAME
MEANING AS THE FUTURE WITH “WILL.”
Explanation Examples
affirmative We are going to take the midterm exam in
March.
negative We are not going to do all the work in the
textbook.
question Is the exam going to be open book?
short answer Yes, it is.
OR
No, it isn’t OR No, it’s not.

6. WE ARE GOING TO TAKE THE MIDTERM EXAM IN
MARCH.
Past X X future
now

7. FUTURE WITH PRESENT PROGRESSIVE HAS
THE SAME MEANING.
Explanation Examples
affirmative We are taking the midterm exam in March.
negative We are not doing all the work in the
textbook.

8. WE ARE TAKING THE MIDTERM EXAM IN MARCH.
Past X X future
now

9. FUTURE WITH SIMPLE PRESENT IS USED FOR
AN ACTION THAT IS SCHEDULED OR
REGULARLY EXPECTED.
Explanation Examples
affirmative The final exam is in May.
Summer school starts in June.
negative There aren’t any classes the week of final
exams.
The campus doesn’t close in the summer.
question/short answer Are there any classes in August? Yes, there
are./No, there aren’t.
Do classes begin in August? Yes, they do. /
No, they don’t.

10. SUMMER SCHOOL STARTS IN MAY.
Past X X future
now

11. USE FUTURE PROGRESSIVE FOR AN ACTION
THAT WILL BE IN PROGRESS AT A TIME IN THE
FUTURE.
Explanation Examples
The future progressive describes what will be
going on at a specific time in the future.
What will you be doing at six o’clock this
evening?
At six o’clock, I will be driving home from
work. My mother will be cooking dinner.
The future progressive describes what will be
going on when something else happens. The
other action is in the simple present even
though it is in the future.
When I get home, my family will be waiting
for me.

12. AT SIX O’CLOCK I WILL BE DRIVING HOME FROM WORK.
Past X X future
now

13. USE FUTURE PERFECT AND FUTURE PERFECT
PROGRESSIVE TO TELL WHAT WILL HAPPEN
BEFORE ANOTHER TIME IN THE FUTURE.
Explanation Examples
The future perfect is for something that will be
finished before another time in the future.
Present tense is used for the other time in the
future.
Two years from now I will have graduated
from Laney.
Question: What will you have done three
years from how?
The future perfect progressive is for a
continued action something that will be
finished at another time in the future. Present
tense is used for the other time in the future.
When I get home, my mother will have been
cooking dinner for two hours.
Question: How long will she have been
cooking when you get home?

14. TWO YEARS FROM NOW I WILL HAVE GRADUATED
FROM LANEY.
Past X X X Future
Future
now

15. WHEN I GET HOME, MY WIFE WILL HAVE BEEN
COOKING DINNER FOR TWO HOURS.
Past X X future
now

16. REMEMBER THAT WE DO NOT USE STATIVE
VERBS IN THE PROGRESSIVE!
Explanation Examples
Don’t use a stative verb in the future
progressive.
** Ten years from now we will not be
forgetting this year.
Don’t use a stative verb in the future perfect
progressive.
** Fifty years from now the world will have
been becoming warmer.