French Lesson 5: Talking About Future Plans and Events

In this lesson, we will focus on how to talk about future plans and events in French. We will cover the
futur proche (near future) and the futur simple (simple future), along with common vocabulary and
expressions used to discuss future intentions, events, and possibilities.

1. The Futur Proche (Near Future)

The futur proche is used to describe actions that are going to happen soon. It is equivalent to the English
construction "going to + verb."

Formation:

 The futur proche is formed by using the present tense of the verb aller (to go) + the infinitive of
the main verb.

Conjugation of aller:

 Je vais (I am going)

 Tu vas (You are going)

 Il/Elle/On va (He/She/One is going)

 Nous allons (We are going)

 Vous allez (You are going)

 Ils/Elles vont (They are going)

Examples:

 Je vais manger au restaurant ce soir. (I am going to eat at the restaurant tonight.)

 Nous allons voyager en Espagne l’été prochain. (We are going to travel to Spain next summer.)

 Il va faire ses devoirs après le dîner. (He is going to do his homework after dinner.)

Negative form: To make the sentence negative, place ne before the form of aller and pas after it.

 Je ne vais pas travailler demain. (I am not going to work tomorrow.)

2. The Futur Simple (Simple Future)

The futur simple is used to talk about future events that are more distant or less certain. It corresponds
to the English "will + verb."

Formation:

 For regular -er and -ir verbs, the futur simple is formed by taking the infinitive of the verb and
adding the following endings:

o je: -ai
 o tu: -as

o il/elle/on: -a

o nous: -ons

o vous: -ez

o ils/elles: -ont

 For regular -re verbs, you drop the final -e from the infinitive before adding the endings.

Examples:

 Je parlerai avec lui demain. (I will talk to him tomorrow.)

 Nous finirons nos projets avant la fin de la semaine. (We will finish our projects before the end
of the week.)

 Ils vendront leur maison l’année prochaine. (They will sell their house next year.)

Irregular verbs: Some common verbs have irregular stems in the futur simple but the same endings.
Here are a few examples:

 Être → je serai (I will be)

 Avoir → j’aurai (I will have)

 Aller → j’irai (I will go)

 Faire → je ferai (I will do/make)

 Pouvoir → je pourrai (I will be able to)

 Savoir → je saurai (I will know)

Examples:

 Nous serons en vacances en juillet. (We will be on vacation in July.)

 Tu auras ton diplôme l’année prochaine. (You will get your diploma next year.)

3. Common Expressions with the Future

When talking about the future, certain expressions are commonly used to specify when something will
happen.

Expressions of time:

 Demain (tomorrow)

 La semaine prochaine (next week)

 L’année prochaine (next year)

 Dans deux jours (in two days)

 Plus tard (later)

 Un jour (one day)

Examples:

 Nous allons partir bientôt. (We are going to leave soon.)

 Il viendra la semaine prochaine. (He will come next week.)

 Un jour, je travaillerai en France. (One day, I will work in France.)

4. Expressing Intentions and Plans

Here are some common phrases and verbs to express future plans or intentions:

 Avoir l’intention de + infinitive (to intend to):

o J’ai l’intention de changer de travail. (I intend to change jobs.)

 Espérer + infinitive (to hope to):

o J’espère voyager l’année prochaine. (I hope to travel next year.)

 Prévoir de + infinitive (to plan to):

o Nous prévoyons de partir en vacances en août. (We are planning to go on vacation in

 Penser à + infinitive (to think about):

o Je pense à étudier à l’étranger. (I am thinking about studying abroad.)

Examples:

 J’ai l’intention de m’installer à Paris après mes études. (I intend to move to Paris after my
studies.)

 Ils espèrent acheter une nouvelle voiture bientôt. (They hope to buy a new car soon.)

5. Talking About Future Events

When discussing events that will take place in the future, you can use the futur proche or futur simple,
depending on how soon or certain the event is. Use the future to talk about celebrations, meetings, or
appointments.

Examples:

 Nous allons fêter Noël chez mes parents cette année. (We are going to celebrate Christmas at my
parents’ house this year.)

 Il y aura une réunion demain matin. (There will be a meeting tomorrow morning.)
  Le concert commencera à 20 heures. (The concert will start at 8 p.m.)

6. The Future with “Si” Clauses

In French, si (if) clauses are often used to describe conditions that will result in future actions. The
present tense is used in the si clause, and the futur simple is used in the result clause.

Structure:
Si + present tense, futur simple.

Examples:

 Si tu viens, nous irons au cinéma. (If you come, we will go to the cinema.)

 S’il fait beau demain, nous partirons en randonnée. (If the weather is nice tomorrow, we will go
hiking.)

7. Expressing Uncertainty or Possibility About the Future

To express uncertainty or possibility about future events, you can use modal verbs such as pouvoir (to be
able to) and devoir (to have to), along with the future tense.

Examples:

 Il pourra venir demain, mais ce n’est pas sûr. (He might be able to come tomorrow, but it’s not
certain.)

 Nous devrons partir si le temps est mauvais. (We will have to leave if the weather is bad.)

8. Exercises

Exercise 1: Fill in the Future Tense Conjugate the following verbs in the futur simple.

1. Demain, je/j’ ______ (aller) à la plage.

2. Nous ______ (partir) en voyage le mois prochain.

3. Tu ______ (faire) tes devoirs ce soir.

4. Ils ______ (être) en réunion toute la journée.

Exercise 2: Complete with Futur Proche or Futur Simple Choose whether to use the futur proche or
futur simple to complete the sentences.

1. Ce soir, nous ______ (manger) au restaurant.

2. L’année prochaine, elle ______ (travailler) en Italie.

3. Je/j’ ______ (faire) du sport demain matin.

4. Ils ______ (acheter) une nouvelle maison bientôt.