Aspects of the Future Tense

What are the aspects of the future tense?

Although English has no future tense in the strict sense (i.e., it has no verb form specific to future meaning), we commonly refer to several structures that are used for future meaning as belonging to the “future tense.” The most common of these structures begin with will or a form of the verb be + going to. For example:

  • “I will go with you.”
  • “I am going to send you an email.”

Verb markers indicate that the action takes place in the future, but it’s the aspect of the verb that describes how it will be structured in time. The future marker and the aspect together create verb structures that are commonly known as future simple, future continuous (or future progressive), future perfect, and future perfect continuous.

For the purpose of clarity, our example sentences will all use will, but it should be remembered that, in each of the examples, we can replace will with another modal verb of future meaning (shall, might, would, could, etc.) or with a form of be + going to.

Future Simple

The future simple structure is a combination of the future tense and the simple aspect. It is used to express actions and events that will happen at a specific point in the future. The simple aspect emphasizes the action or state as a whole. The structure is formed using will + the base form of the verb (the infinitive without to). For example:

  • “We will go to a private school when we are older.”
  • “They will move next door to us soon.”
  • “I will be famous in the future.”

Future Continuous

The future continuous structure is a combination of the future tense and the continuous aspect. It is used to express actions or events that will be ongoing at a specific point in the future.

The future continuous is formed using will + be + the present participle. For example:

  • “They will be playing outside when their father arrives.”
  • “I won’t answer my phone later because I’ll be driving.”
  • “We will be eating dinner at 7 o’clock.”

Like other structures that reflect the continuous aspect, it is usually only used with action verbs, not with stative verbs. For example, we couldn’t say “I will be knowing John later” or “She will be seeming sad this evening.”

Future Perfect

The future perfect structure is a combination of the future tense and the perfect simple aspect. It is used to express actions and events that will be completed at a specific point in the future. It is formed using will + have + the past participle. For example:

  • “She will have eaten before she arrives.”
  • “We will have seen that movie already.”
  • “I will have spent a lot of money after this weekend’s festivities.”

Future Perfect Continuous

Finally, the future perfect continuous structure is a combination of the perfect, continuous aspect and the future tense. It is used to emphasize that action will be ongoing until a specific point in the future, after which it will stop. Like the future continuous, it is typically not used with stative verbs, but only with action verbs. It is formed using will + have + been + the present participle. For example:

  • “We will have been waiting for a long time when the bus finally comes.”
  • “My little sister will have been sitting quietly for an hour when the movie finishes.”
  • “I will have been cleaning all day when you arrive, so I’ll be too tired to go out.”

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