Future continuous and future perfect

Exercises: 1 2 3

Exercise 2

Choose the correct forms of the future continuous and future perfect to complete the sentences.

1 Don't phone between 7 and 8. We dinner then.

2 Phone me after 8 o'clock. We dinner by then.

3 Tomorrow afternoon, we're going to play tennis from 3 o'clock until 4.30. So, at 4 o'clock, we tennis.

4 A: Can we meet tomorrow? B: Yes, but not in the afternoon. I .

5 A: What time does the meeting finish? Will you be free at 11.30? B: Yes, the meeting by then.

6 If you need to contact me, I at the Lion Hotel until Friday.

7 Ben is on holiday, and he is spending his money very quickly. If he continues like this, he all his money before the end of his holiday.

8 Do you think you the same job in ten years' time?

9 Lisa is from New Zealand. She is travelling around Europe at the moment. So far she has travelled about 1,000 miles. By the end of the trip, she more than 3,000 miles.

10 A: Laura tomorrow? B: Yes, probably. Why?

Exercises: 1 2 3

Future continuous – Grammar chart

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Future continuous – Use

Actions in progress in the future

We use the future continuous to talk about situations or actions that will be in progress at a certain time in the future.

This time next week, we‘ll be travelling to Paris.
Tomorrow at 10, you‘ll be doing your exam.
When you get off the train, I‘ll be waiting on the platform.
In two months’ time, we‘ll be lying on the beach and drinking a mojito.

Future arrangements (=present continuous)

We use the future continuous instead of the present continuous to talk about future events that have already been planned or decided.

We’ll be coming next weekend.
We’ll be leaving at 8 a.m. tomorrow.

Future continuous: signal words

As you can see in the examples above, we often use the future continuous with time expressions such as:

This time … (this time tomorrow, this time next week, etc.)
When …
At + time … (at seven tomorrow, at midday next Monday, etc.)
In … (in two weeks, in three months, in five years, etc.)
In …’ time (in two weeks’ time, in three months’ time, in five years’ time, etc.)

Future perfect – Grammar chart

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Future perfect – Use

Actions finished in the future

We use the future perfect for actions that will be finished before a certain time in the future.

By 2050, researchers will have found a cure for cancer.
By this time next year, I’ll have graduated.
When you arrive tomorrow, we’ll have left.

Duration until some time in the future

We use the future perfect to talk about the duration of a situation until a certain time in the future.

By the time I leave, I will have been in England for six months.
In two years, we will have been married for twenty years.

Future perfect: signal words

As you can see in the examples above, we often use the future perfect with time expressions such as:

By … (by tomorrow, by next week, by the end of the year, etc.)
By this time … (by this time tomorrow, by this time next week, etc.)
In … (in two weeks, in five years, etc.)
When/Before …

By + time expression means ‘not later than’, ‘at’ or ‘before’ certain time.

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