English has no real indicative future tense. It's important to understand this when learning how English refers to the future.

1. (no)
Future

2. looking for the Future Tense

3. “ il futuro in inglese si
”
il futuro in inglese si
costruisce con ‘will’
costruisce con „will‟

4. “ il futuro in inglese si
”
il futuro in inglese si
costruisce con ‘will’
costruisce con „will‟

5. When Old English arrived in the
British Isles in the 5th Century AD,
it didn‟t have a future tense!

6. Modern English doesn‟t have a
„real‟ Future Tense either.

7. ?
so

8. how does a language with no
Future Tense refer to future
time?

9. consider:

10. I want to go to the cinema this evening.

11. present time
and Present Tense
I want to go to the cinema this evening.

12. I want to go to the cinema this evening.
future time
no tense

13. the verb in the Present
„looks into the future‟
I want to go to the cinema this evening.

14. plan
hope
I want to go to the cinema this evening.
need
expect

15. many verbs can
look into the future
in this way
plan
hope
I want to go to the cinema this evening.
need
expect

16. the choice of verb
shows how we
view the action in
the future
plan
hope
I want to go to the cinema this evening.
need
expect

17. the choice of verb
shows how we
view the action in
the future
plan
hope
I want to go to the cinema this evening.
need
expect

18. it‟s useful to communicate our
viewpoint

19. in LINGUISTICS
this property is called
aspect

20. in our example
plan
we used vocab hope
to communicate want
need
aspect expect

21. we are going to study how
grammar
communicates aspect

22. these are the forms
that we are going to study:

23. present simple timetabled events
about to immediate future
going to future intentions
present continuous future plans
modal will and shall willingness
non-modal will and shall escape from aspect!

24. www.davidnicholson.it