Future continuous; Future perfect

Affirmative

Negative

Interrogative

Short answers

FUTURE CONTINUOUS * FUTURE PERFECT

I’ll be waiting. We’ll have arrived.

He won’t be sleeping. She won’t have finished.

Will it be snowing? Will they have graduated?

Yes, I / you / he / she / it / we / you / they will. No, I / you / he / she / it / we / you / they won’t.

* Do not use this tense with state verbs ➝ I will be in Paris by this time tomorrow. (not: I will be being...)

USAGE AND EXAMPLES

• Both the Future continuous (will be doing) and the Future perfect (will have done) are used when we project ourselves forward into the future.

NOW Future perfect Future continuous

By this time tomorrow I will have passed my exam and I will be flying to New York. (I am imagining my situation by this time tomorrow: the exam will be over and the action in progress will be flying to New York) • These two tenses are often used with future time expressions with by (like by the time, by then, by this/next time)

FUTURE CONTINUOUS • The Future continuous refers to an action or event in progress at a certain moment in the future.

This time next Friday we’ll be lying in the sun on a sandy beach in the Caribbean. • It is often used when talking about events that will happen if everything goes as planned or talking about trains and planes arriving or leaving from stations and airports: I’ll be going to the swimming pool three times a week this semester, so I won’t have much time for rugby.

The 6,45 train for York will be leaving from Platform 6. • It can be used when you guess that something is happening now.

Don’t call Ellen now: she’ll be having a shower. • It can also be used to ask about future plans, in a polite, tactful way.

Will you be having dinner with us tomorrow Mr Jameson?

FUTURE PERFECT • The Future perfect refers to an action that will already be over at a certain moment in the future.

The book must be taken back by Thursday. - Don’t worry: by then we’ll have already returned it. • The Future perfect simple is used when we talk about one’s achievements at a certain moment in the future.

I hope I’ll have finished university by 2017. • We can also use this tense to guess what must already have happened now.

Let’s call a taxi. Our bus will have left by now.

FUTURE IN THE PAST

• When we want to express the idea that in the past you thought something would happen in the future we usually use the modal verb would + Base form. The Future in the past follows the same basic rules as the Future Simple, but would is used instead of will. Compare the examples: Future simple: I’ll be late for lunch. Future in the past: I knew I would be late for lunch. (in the past I predicted something that would happen at a later moment). Future simple: According to the weather forecast it’ll rain tomorrow. Future in the past: According to the weather forecast it would rain the day after. (describing wat was a prediction in the past) • It is also possible to use other Future in the past forms like was/were going to or was/were about to.

Study these examples: It was going to rain when we decided to come back home. (describing an imminent event at a given moment in the past)

I was about to leave but the phone rang. (I was on the point of doing something soon afterwards) • The Future in the past is often found in reported speech (see Unit 27 for more information)

He said he would try to get in touch as soon as possible.

Match the two parts of the sentences. 1 When he begins his new job, 2 By the time you get to the restaurant 3 Don’t worry. This time next week 4 Don’t disturb him now: 5 It’s 2pm. 6 Next Sunday my parents 7 The kids will be sleeping 8 It’s still dark outside:

a he’ll be studying for his exam. b Terry’ll have finished having lunch by now. c will have been married for 50 years. d by the time you get back home. e everybody will still be sleeping. f he’ll be earning enough to buy a Ferrari. g we’ll have found a solution to the problem. h they’ll be having dinner.

Look at the train timetable and complete the sentences with the Future continuous or the Future perfect.

0

1 2

3

The 9.00 train to Newcastle will be leaving from Platform 17. The train to Newcastle ________ at 9.02. At 9:12 the train from Leeds _________ at Platform 12. The train to Sheffield __________ at 9:45.

4

5

6

The train to Manchester ___________ when the Glasgow train is arriving. The 10:05 train from Glasgow ____________ at Platform 7. The train from Preston ___________ at Platform 9 at 10:15.

10 Listen to the conversation between Cindy and Tracy and say if the following statements are true (T) or false (F). T F 1 Cindy will be doing her homework on Friday. 2 Tracy will be watching a movie on Friday after dinner. 3 Cindy will have finished working on her History test by Saturday afternoon. 4 Tracy and Mick will be having dinner close to the cinema. 5 Cindy will be leaving later than Tracy because she lives near the cinema. 6 Tracy and Mick will already be there when Cindy arrives.

First Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first using the word in brackets. You must use between 2 and 5 words. 1 I think I’ll be on my way home by that time. (going) I think I ___________ by that time. 2 I’m sure the kids are doing something wrong. The kids will ___________ : they’re too

They’re too quiet. (be) quiet. 3 ‘I know I’ll regret this one day’ thought Tom. (knew) Tom ___________ that one day. 4 During the course we’ll be learning how to breathe After the course we ___________ properly. (learnt) how to breathe properly. 5 I suppose Dave has already arrived in Sydney. (will) Dave ___________ arrived in Sydney now. 6 Mum brought a few sandwiches because she Mum brought a few sandwiches because expected us to be hungry later. (would) she ___________ be hungry later.

Julia is going on a 3-day school trip. Look at the itinerary and complete the sentences with the correct future tense of the verbs from the box.

be go have land leave listen travel visit

Trip to Berlin Tuesday 7.00am departure from Madrid Airport 10.00am arrival in Berlin afternoon: Pergamon Museum evening: dinner at hotel

Wednesday

morning: Jewish Museum lunch: Potsdamer Platz afternoon: New National Gallery evening: concert Berliner Philarmoniker

Thursday

morning: Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie lunch and early afternoon: Brandenburg Gate 7:00pm: flight back 10:00pm: arrival in Madrid

1 2 3

4 5 6

7 8

At 7.15 on Tuesday Julia _____just ______ from Madrid. At 9.55 on Tuesday she ______________ in Berlin. On Wednesday evening she __________ 2 museums and an art gallery. On Wednesday she _________ in Berlin for two days. On Wednesday evening she _______ to classical music. On Thursday she _____________ lunch near the Brandenburg Gate. At 9pm on Thursday she _____________ for two hours. At 10.15 pm on Thursday she _______ home from the airport.

25 Underline the correct Future in the past form. 1 Why are you back already? I thought you were about to / would go to the swimming pool before dinner. 2 I was going to / would leave when he finally turned up. 3 It was really tiring. I didn’t realise the fitness lesson was about to / would go on for an hour and a half. 4 Meg was determined: she was going to / was about to be a doctor and she would / was about to save hundreds of lives. 5 I was about to / would give my speech when a man at the back of the audience stood up. 6 We were going to / would start the lesson when the fire alarm went off.