Look at these examples to see how the future continuous and future perfect are used.
In three years' time, I'll be studying medicine.
In five years' time, I'll have finished studying medicine.
Try this exercise to test your grammar.
- Grammar test 1
Read the explanation to learn more.
Grammar explanation
Future continuous
We can use the future continuous (will/won't be + -ing form) to talk about future actions that:
- will be in progress at a specific time in the future:
When you come out of school tomorrow, I'll be boarding a plane.
Try to call before 8 o'clock. After that, we'll be watching the match.
You can visit us during the first week of July. I won't be working then.
- we see as new, different or temporary:
Today we're taking the bus but next week we'll be taking the train.
He'll be staying with his parents for several months while his father is in recovery.
Will you be starting work earlier with your new job?
Future perfect
We use the future perfect simple (will/won't have + past participle) to talk about something that will be completed before a specific time in the future.
The guests are coming at 8 p.m. I'll have finished cooking by then.
On 9 October we'll have been married for 50 years.
Will you have gone to bed when I get back?
We can use phrases like by or by the time (meaning 'at some point before') and in or in a day's time / in two months' time / in five years' time etc. (meaning 'at the end of this period') to give the time period in which the action will be completed.
I won't have written all the reports by next week.
By the time we arrive, the kids will have gone to bed.
I'll have finished in an hour and then we can watch a film.
In three years' time, I'll have graduated from university.
Do this exercise to test your grammar again.
- Grammar test 2
Hello AsahiYo20,
The future continuous is used here to express the speaker's expectation. It is a prediction about the future based upon what the speaker knows, similar to going to.
While going to would express a future based upon present evidence, the future continuous expresses an expectation based upon the speaker's knowledge and experience.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi again AshahiYo20,
It's important to remember that the use of future forms in English is very nuanced and often dependent on the speaker's perspective rather than objective facts in the world. Attempts to tie usage down to very specific situations or elements of meaning tend to fall afoul of this. However, it is useful to identify certain tendencies.
1. I think this is accurate to a degree, though I'm not sure the distinction between subjective and objective evidence is necessarily one which is clear and unambiguous.
2. Yes, you could use will + verb here. It would indicate a greater degree of certainty, in my opinion.
3. Yes, I think this is true.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello cms10,
You could use [will verb] in each of those sentences.
The form [will be verb-ing] has several uses. It is often used to describe an arrangement which has not yet been made but is sure. It can help to compare it to the present continuous:
The difference between [will verb] and [will be verb-ing] is often one of nuance and emphasis rather than objective fact.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello cms10,
1. Yes, I think that's generally correct, though of course the context of any particular utterance is important. Will tends to imply a high degree of conviction, whether that is in the form of a personal conviction (a belief) or a personal obligation (a promise).
2. In many cases, yes. However, I would advise against tying the distinction between the two forms too closely to real-world criteria. It's really often a choice based on how the speaker sees or feels about the situation rather than a question of objective fact.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team