Talking about the future in English
English has no single future tense. The form you choose shows whether something is a plan, a fixed arrangement, a decision made now or a prediction.
The lessons start with the everyday choices and add the future perfect and future continuous at B2.
The essentials
- Going to for plans and intentions: I'm going to look for a new job.
- The present continuous for arrangements with a time and place: I'm meeting Ana at six.
- Will for decisions made at the moment of speaking, offers and promises: I'll get the door.
- The future perfect for something completed before a future time: By June, I'll have finished the course.
- The future continuous for something in progress at a future moment: This time tomorrow I'll be flying to Lima.
Every lesson on this topic
Each lesson has a full explanation, examples, common mistakes and practice questions.
A2 (English at A2)
- Plans, arrangements and decisions: going to, will and the present continuous: Use going to for plans, the present continuous for fixed arrangements, and will for decisions made now
B2 (English at B2)
- By then I'll have finished / This time tomorrow I'll be flying: The future perfect for things done before a future time, and the future continuous for things in progress at a future time
Other topics
- Present perfect or past simple?
- Talking about the past: English past tenses
- English conditionals: first, second, third and mixed
- English modal verbs: must, have to, should and more
- The passive in English
- Reported speech and reporting verbs
- Relative clauses: who, which, that, whose
- Linking words: although, despite, however, whereas
- -ing or to? Verb patterns in English
- Formal, professional and academic English
- Emphasis in English: inversion and cleft sentences