The Future: Rules of Use

• newEditor
• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 5

Using Future Forms in English

Open the lesson as a system of choices rather than a list to memorise: English has several future forms because speakers express prediction, intention, arrangement, timetable, duration, and completion in different ways.

Learning goal

I can choose and use the correct future form in English for different meanings and situations.

Will + infinitive

• predictions based on opinions; opinions (He'll never make it with this attitude.)

• decisions at the spur of the moment (I'll have the pizza.)

• promises, offers and willingness (I'll be around later to help you with that.)

• future facts (The presidential election will be held in 2028.)

• in formal context for arrangements (The ceremony will start at ...)

• weather forecasts (There will be heavy showers tomorrow, followed by drizzle later in the evening.)

Stress that this form is not only 'the future tense'. It often reflects the speaker's view at the moment of speaking.

Going to + infinitive

• intentions and plans (We are going to bake a cake for Mom, we have already bought the ingredients; I am going to study tonight.)

• predictions based on present evidence (Look at her staggering all over the place, she's going to fall.; Look at those clouds, it's going to rain!)

Students often overuse 'will'. Make the contrast clear: 'going to' usually sounds more planned or evidence-based.

Will or going to?

• will: a prediction, promise or instant decision

• going to: a prior plan or a prediction from evidence

Compare:

- I'll have the salad. (decision now)

- I'm going to have the salad. (already decided)

This contrast is one of the main decision points in the lesson. Keep examples short and paired.

Which sentence shows an instant decision?

A

I'll answer the door.

B

I'm going to study tonight.

C

It's going to rain.

D

We're flying on Friday.

Correct answer: 'I'll answer the door' because the decision is made at the moment of speaking. The distractors reflect a prior plan, an evidence-based prediction, and an arrangement.

Shall + infinitive

Less common in modern English, but it is still used:

• with I and we for suggestions and offers (Shall we go out this weekend?Shall I get you some tea?)

• in formal rules or legal style (The tenant shall pay the rent on time.)

Mention that 'shall' sounds more formal or traditional than 'will' in many contexts.

Present continuous for the future

• a fixed arrangement (when and/or where is known, in your agenda)

I am flying to Chicago this evening.

• agreement between people (in your agenda)

I am meeting my mother for supper at the tapas restaurant at 8 pm.

Anchor the idea of arrangement: the plan is already organised, not just intended.

Present simple for the future

• timetables (The plane departs at noon.)

• schedules (School starts at 8:10 AM.)

• official programmes (The meeting starts at...)

-> events that are fixed by a system, not by personal arrangement

A common confusion is between arranged plans and timetables. Present simple is tied to a schedule outside the speaker's control.

Present continuous or present simple?

1. Present continuous: We're meeting the teacher at 9.00.

2. Present simple: The lesson starts at 9.00.

1. personal arrangement.

2. scheduled event.

This is a key contrast slide. Keep returning to the source of the plan: people arranged it, or the timetable fixed it.

Future continuous

Will be + verb-ing

describes an action that will be going on at a particular time in the future or over a particular period in the future (We will be travelling to Austria on the night of September 16th)

something that has been arranged previously (She will be visiting us over the course of summer.)

very polite ways of saying things (Will you be needing anything else, Madam?)

Students may first think this is just a longer future. Stress the idea of 'in progress at that time'.

Future continuous: use

• This time tomorrow, I will be travelling.

• At 8.00, she will be working.

• Don't call at noon; they'll be having lunch.

Good moment to compare with future simple: 'I will travel tomorrow' vs 'I will be travelling at noon tomorrow'.

Future perfect

Will have + past participle

shows that something will be completed before a future point.

(They will have finished painting the house by next week)

The focus is on completion by a deadline or before another event.

(I hope they will have finished the paint job before we go on holiday.)

The key word is 'by'. If students can ask 'completed by when?', future perfect is often a candidate.

Future perfect continuous

Will have been + verb-ing

To emphasize how long sth. has been going on for at a future point/shows duration up to a future point.

It answers the idea of how long by then rather than simple completion.

She will have been studying for four hours straight by supper time.

This form is usually the most advanced one here. Keep the meaning simple: duration continuing until a future moment.

Future perfect continuous: use

• By June, I will have been living here for two years.

• At midnight, she will have been working for six hours.

• By then, they will have been waiting for a long time.

Contrast with future perfect: 'will have lived' focuses on completion/result; 'will have been living' highlights duration/process.

Be + infinitive

Formal use:

• official arrangements

• instructions or orders

• announcements about planned events

(In the case of an emergency, passengers are to use the emergency exits at the rear end.; You are to remain here.)

This structure appears in notices, formal reports, and institutional language more than in casual conversation.

Other future expressions

English also uses fixed expressions to show that something is very near or about to happen:

• be about to

• be on the verge of

• be on the brink of

• be due to

• be (un)likely to

• be bound to

These expressions are not full tense forms, but they are important ways to express future meaning precisely.

Near future and expectation

• The film is about to start.

• The company is on the verge of collapse.

• The train is due to arrive at 10.15.

• She is likely to win.

Show that each expression adds a nuance: immediacy, brink of change, scheduled expectation, or probability.

Choosing the best future form

Choose the form by meaning:

• opinion or instant decision → will

• plan or evidence → going to

• arrangement → present continuous

• timetable → present simple

• action in progress then → future continuous

• completed by then → future perfect

• duration up to then → future perfect continuous

This is the resolving slide for the central question: future forms are choices of meaning, not random alternatives.