21.11.2022
Future Simple: usage rules
What are your plans for tomorrow? In addition, even if you don’t have any special plans, you will still go to work or school tomorrow, stay home or go on vacation, have lunch and dinner. You’ll be doing something anyway. In addition, you’ll need the Future Simple tense to tell you in English what’s yet to happen.
What is Future Simple
There are different grammatical ways to express actions that have not yet happened but will only happen. In addition, you will encounter the simple future tense most often. It is one of the simplest tenses, but it also has nuances in usage and formation.
This future tense type is used to refer to actions or states that begin and end in the future. These events have not yet happened but will happen sometime in the future.
I will meet her in the park. — Я встречусь с ней в парке.
Tomorrow I will read a new book. — Завтра я буду читать новую книгу.
The simple future tense has marker words to help you navigate through the tenses: in a year/week/month (через год / неделю / месяц), next year/month/week (в следующем году / месяце / на следующей неделе), tomorrow, the day after tomorrow (послезавтра), later (позже), in 2030 (в 2030 году)..
Let’s look at the Future Simple main uses
To make predictions, to speculate about the future. These can be confident predictions or ones that are more uncertain. If there is no reason to use another future tense, the Future simple is used.
I think our team will win tomorrow’s match. — Я думаю, наша команда выиграет завтрашний матч.
- To denote facts that will happen in the future.
The sun will rise at five in the morning. — Солнце взойдет в пять утра.
- When you promise, ask, refuse, and offer. It’s about wanting or not wanting to do something.
I‘ll help you with your homework. — Я помогу тебе с домашней работой.
I won’t go! — Я не пойду.
- When talking about the decision in the speech moment.
I am hungry. I‘ll probably eat a couple of sandwiches. — Я голоден. Я, пожалуй, съем пару бутербродов.
- Future Simple is used in a conditional sentence.
If you don’t hurry, we’ll be late. — Если ты не поторопишься, мы опоздаем.
- To give an order, a command, to make something happen.
You will submit your report tomorrow or you’ll be fired! — Ты сдашь свой отчет завтра, или тебя уволят!
Future Simple: how it is formed
The simple future tense is formed according to its name – simply, with the auxiliary verb will added before the sense verb.
Подлежащее + will + смысловой глагол.
Sometimes in British English, especially in fiction, law and other official documents, you will find the auxiliary verb shall in the 1st person singular and plural (I shall, we shall). This was used in the past, but today it is no longer the common norm. In interrogative sentences shall is used when you are asking permission to do something or offering to do something.
Shall we dance? — Потанцуем?
Shall we start writing an essay? — Нам начинать писать сочинение?
Future Simple: affirmative sentences
Note that the auxiliary verb does not change, in either person or number it is will.
He will sleep until noon if no one wakes him up. — Он проспит до обеда, если никто его не разбудит.
They will be at home tomorrow. — Они будут завтра дома.
The verb will can be used in both the full form and the short form: I will – I’ll, they will – they’ll.
She’ll be a superstar. — Она будет суперзвездой.
Future Simple: question sentences
To ask a general question, you must put the verb will in the first place:
Will + подлежащее + смысловой глагол?
Will you read a new book tomorrow? — Ты будешь читать завтра новую книгу?
To ask a question with a question word, put it at the very beginning, before the auxiliary verb.
What will you read tomorrow? — Что ты будешь читать завтра?
Who will win the match tomorrow? — Кто выиграет матч завтра?
To ask a question with a question word, put it at the very beginning, before the auxiliary verb
For negation, you must add the particle not:
Подлежащее + will not + смысловой глагол.
I will not go out of town tomorrow. — Я не поеду завтра за город.
The negation short form is won’t.
She won’t be a superstar. — Она не будет суперзвездой.
In addition, there are question sentences in English that will begin with won’t. In Russian, you will begin to translate them with the words “may”, “may not”.
Won’t you go to bed early? — Разве ты не ляжешь спать пораньше?
Won’t you help her? — Неужели ты не поможешь ей?
The be going to construction
The future tense can be expressed not only with the verb will, but also with the construction to be going to:
Подлежащее + be (am/is/are) going to + смысловой глагол в форме инфинитива.
My aunt is going to perform the surgery. — Моя тетя собирается делать операцию.
However, this construction is not always used, but only in denoting the simple future tense certain cases. And it is more informal speech characteristic..
- To tell about the intentions and plans that you had before the speech. Often, when translated into Russian, the construction “going to do something” is used.
I bought a new book yesterday and I am going to read it tonight. — Я вчера купила новую книгу и сегодня вечером буду читать ее.
I‘m going to talk to him today. — Я собираюсь поговорить с ним сегодня.
To make a suggestion, especially if there are clear signs that it will happen.
Take your umbrella with you. It looks like it’s going to rain. – Возьмите с собой зонтик. Похоже, будет дождь.
- Look at those boys playing football! They’re going to break the window. – Посмотрите на этих мальчиков, играющих в футбол! Они собираются разбить окно..
In the interrogative sentence the auxiliary verb to be in this construction comes first, and in the negative sentence the particle not is added after to be.
What are you going to buy with the money you found? — Что вы собираетесь купить на найденные деньги?
I am not going to sleep at all. — Я вообще не собираюсь спать.
We hope that these rules will help you to use the simple future tense correctly.
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