The Future



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There is a global price on carbon. China took the lead in 2017 with a market for trading the right to emit a tonne of CO2, setting the world on a path towards a single carbon price and a powerful incentive to ditch fossil fuels, predicts Jane Burston, Head of Climate and Environment at the UK’s National Physical Laboratory.

Future Tense

The future tense is a verb tense used for a future activity or a future state of being. For example:
  • I will jump in the lake.
  • (This is a future activity.)
  • I will be happy.
  • (This is a future state of being.)
The tense of a verb is determined by when the action took place. The three main tenses are: The Future
  • The Future Tense

Examples of the Types of Future Tense

The future tense is categorized further depending on whether the action will be in progress or will be completed (called the aspect of a verb). The four future tenses are:
The 4 Future TensesExamplesUses
simple future tense
  • I will go.
  • We will celebrate our anniversary by flying to New York.
The simple future tense is used for an action that will occur in the future.
future progressive tense
  • I will be going.
  • The Moscow State Circus will be performing in Cheltenham for the next 3 weeks.
The future progressive tense is used for an ongoing action that will occur in the future.
future perfect tense
  • I will have gone.
  • By the time you arrive, we will have finished the meal and the speeches.
The future perfect tense is used to describe an action that will have been completed at some point in the future.
future perfect progressive
  • I will have been going.
  • In July next year, you will have been studying for three years.
The future perfect progressive tense is used for an ongoing action that will be completed at some specified time in the future.

A Video Summary

Here is a video summarizing this lesson on the future tense.

More about the Simple Future Tense

Here is an infographic summarizing the simple future tense.

Examples of the Simple Future Tense

'will'
+
  • I will play after breakfast.
  • Susan will not go to Germany.
  • What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality. (Greek biographer Plutarch)
  • Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later. (Author Og Mandino)
  • Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere. (Physicist Albert Einstein)
  • Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea. (Robert A Heinlein)
  • In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. (Activist Martin Luther King Jr)
  • Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life. (Chinese philosophe Confucius)
  • (Have to is known as a modal auxiliary verb. Like must, it is used to express obligation.)
  • Happiness is your dentist telling you it won't hurt and then having him catch his hand in the drill. (Producer Johnny Carson)
  • (Remember that won't is a contraction of will not and is often used to form the simple future tense.
  • I won't be a rock star. I will be a legend. (Singer Freddie Mercury)
Read more about the The future of worksimple future tense.

More about the Future Progressive Tense

Here is an infographic summarizing the future progressive tense.

Examples of the Future Progressive Tense

'will be'
+
  • I will be playing for an hour.
  • Will I be spending too much money if I buy the newer model?
  • He will be fighting his way to the boxing championship.
  • Always be nice to those younger than you because they are the ones who will be writing about you.
  • In September, we will be enjoying all the fruit we planted last March.
  • Those who are laughing now will be crying later.
  • Soon I will be doing what I love again. (Guitarist Vinnie Vincent)
  • I'll be performing at 80 years old. Music is like fashion - it changes. But some things will always be the same. (Singer Toni Braxton)
  • (Remember that I'll is a contraction of I will.)
  • Every breath you take. Every move you make. Every bond you break. Every step you take, I'll be watching you. (Singer Sting)
  • She'll be coming around the mountain when she comes.
  • (She'll is a contraction of she will.)
  • She'll be riding six white horses when she comes.
  • The next time you see a spider's web, please pause and look a little closer. You'll be seeing one of the most high-performance materials known to man. (Biologist Cheryl Hayashi)
  • (You'll is a contraction of you will.)
  • In my case, there's no revolving door. I won't be going back to government. (Politician Mary Schapiro)
  • (Won't is a contraction of will not.)
Read more about the future progressive tense.

More about the Future Perfect Tense

Here is an infographic summarizing the future perfect tense.

Examples of the Future Perfect Tense

'will have'
+
  • I will have played by breakfast.
  • By September, Jenny will have taken over that role.
  • Will you have graduated by this time next year?
  • I hope that, when I leave this planet, I will have touched a few people in a positive way. (Actor Will Rothhaar)
  • The rain will not have stopped before the competition starts.
  • You won't have sold a single car by tomorrow if you stay here.
  • (Won't is a contraction of will not.)
Read more about the future perfect tense.

More about the Future Perfect Progressive Tense

Here is an infographic summarizing the future perfect progressive tense.

Examples of the Future Perfect Progressive Tense

'will have been'
+
  • I will have been playing for 2 hours by breakfast.
  • By the time the boat arrives, they will have been living without proper food for two weeks.
  • Shops that will have been running for three or two years by then will have to close down.
  • They will have been driving for ten hours by the time they arrive in Scotland.
  • If it rains again tomorrow, then it will have been raining for three days.
  • He will be agitated when he arrives because he will have been working for ten hours.
  • When you are promoted next year, how long will you have been working on the factory floor?
  • You will not have been waiting for over an hour when the taxi arrives. That's not true.
Read more about the future perfect progressive tense

The Future Is Now

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Verb Tense Widget

Use this widget to learn about the different tenses. How do you use this widget? Well, if there's a button, a drop-down menu, or a , then you can click it!

( verb)

Select the tenses.

Present Tenses

Present Tenses

Simple Present
The simple present tense is mostly used to describe facts and habits.
I base form
you base form
he/she/it 3rd pers sing present
we base form
you base form
they base form
Present Progressive Tense
The present progressive tense is used for an ongoing action in the present.
More...(opens new tab)
I am present participle
you are present participle
he/she/it is present participle
we are present participle
you are present participle
they are present participle
Present Perfect Tense
The present perfect tense is used for actions that began in the past. (Often, the actions continue into the present.)
I have past participle
you have past participle
he/she/it has past participle
we have past participle
you have past participle
they have past participle
Present Perfect Progressive Tense
The present perfect progressive tense is used for a continuous activity that began in the past and continues into the present, or a continuous activity that began in past but has now finished (usually very recently).
More...(opens new tab)
I have been present participle
you have been present participle
he/she/it has been present participle
we have been present participle
you have been present participle
they have been present participle

Past Tenses

Past Tenses

Simple Past
The simple past tense is used to describe a completed activity that happened in the past.
I past tense
you past tense
he/she/it past tense
we past tense
you past tense
they past tense
Past Progressive Tense
The past progressive tense is used to describe an ongoing activity in the past. Often, it is used to set the scene for another action.
More...(opens new tab)
I was present participle
you were present participle
he/she/it was present participle
we were present participle
you were present participle
they were present participle
Past Perfect Tense
The past perfect tense is used to emphasize that an action was completed before another took place.
I had past participle
you had past participle
he/she/it had past participle
we had past participle
you had past participle
they had past participle
Past Perfect Progressive Tense
The past perfect progressive tense is used to show that an ongoing action in the past has ended.
More...(opens new tab)
I had been present participle
you had been present participle
he/she/it had been present participle
we had been present participle
you had been present participle
they had been present participle

Future Tenses

Future Tenses

Simple Future
The simple future tense is used for an action that will occur in the future.
I will base form
you will base form
he/she/it will base form
we will base form
you will base form
they will base form
Future Progressive Tense
The future progressive tense is used for an ongoing action that will occur in the future.
More...(opens new tab)
I will be present participle
you will be present participle
he/she/it will be present participle
we will be present participle
you will be present participle
they will be present participle
Future Perfect Tense
The future perfect tense is used to describe an action that will have been completed at some point in the future.
I will have past participle
you will have past participle
he/she/it will have past participle
we will have past participle
you will have past participle
they will have past participle
Future Perfect Progressive Tense
The future perfect progressive tense is used for an ongoing action that will be completed at some specified time in the future.
More...(opens new tab)
I will have been present participle
you will have been present participle
he/she/it will have been present participle
we will have been present participle
you will have been present participle
they will have been present participle

Slider Showing All the Tenses

The following slider shows all 12 tenses. All the future tenses are highlighted with a yellow background.
Interactive Exercise
Here are three randomly selected questions from a larger exercise, which can be edited, printed to create an exercise worksheet, or sent via email to friends or students.

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The Future Diary

See Also

What are verbs?Past tensePresent tenseTry our drag-and-drop test on verb tensesTensesSimple past tensePast progressive tensePast perfect tensePast perfect progressive tenseSimple present tensePresent progressive tensePresent perfect tensePresent perfect progressive tenseSimple future tenseFuture progressive tenseFuture perfect tenseFuture perfect progressive tenseGlossary of grammatical terms