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PEL125

The document discusses various ways to talk about the future in English using modal verbs like will and going to. It explains that going to is preferred in spoken English to predict future events based on current evidence, while will is used more for predictions based on opinion or experience. Different structures like the present continuous or future perfect are used depending on whether an event is planned or unexpected.

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20 views

PEL125

The document discusses various ways to talk about the future in English using modal verbs like will and going to. It explains that going to is preferred in spoken English to predict future events based on current evidence, while will is used more for predictions based on opinion or experience. Different structures like the present continuous or future perfect are used depending on whether an event is planned or unexpected.

Uploaded by

rs8352406
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Tense

Week 2_PEL125
Use of Will and going to

Will /going to + infinitive are commonly used to talk about the


future.
e.g. • John'll / John's going to meet us in the restaurant at
8 o'clock.
Will you / Are you going to come back this evening?
However, going to is preferred in spoken English (where
it is often pronounced /дэпэ/) and will is preferred in
formal written
English.
• We use Going to when we PREDICT that something will
happen in the future because we have some evidence for it
now.
e.g. Did you know that Bob and Kath are going to get married?

We use Will if prediction is based on our opinion or our


past experience we use will:
e.g. Why not come over at the weekend? The children will
enjoy seeing you again.
• When we talk about INTENTIONS or DECISIONS about the
future that were made some time before we report them, we
prefer going to or the present continuous .
e.g. 'Who's arranging the party?' 'Jo's going to do it.'

• When we state a decision made at the moment of speaking,


we prefer will:
e.g. 'Is that the phone?"Don't worry. I'll get it.'
• We can use will or going to in the main clause of an if-
sentence when we say that something (often something
negative) is conditional on something else - it will happen if
something else happens first:
e.g. If we go on like this, we'll / we're going to lose all
our money.

• We use will (or another auxiliary), not going to, when


we describe a future event that follows another.
e.g. If you move to your left, you'll (or may) be able to see
the church.
• When we talk about an INTENTION to do something in
the future, where no definite arrangement has been made,
we prefer going to.
e.g I'm still not feeling very well, so I think I'm going to
see the doctor some time this week. (Indefinite arrangement)

When we talk about a DEFINITE ARRANGEMENT,


we prefer the present continuous.
e.g. We're having a party on Sunday, 12th November. Can you
come? (Definite arrangement)
We don't use the present continuous for the future:

• when we make or report predictions about activities or


events over which we have no control
e.g. I think it's going to rain / '11 rain soon, (not I think it's
raining soon.)
• when we talk about permanent future situations
e.g. People are going to live / will live longer in the future, (not
...are living...)
• with the verb be
e.g. I'm going to be in Tokyo in May. (not I'm being in Tokyo...)
Going to+go OR Be +going
• We tend to avoid going to + go and use the present continuous
form of go instead:

e.g.
• I'm going to town on Saturday, (rather than I'm going to go
to town...)
• Alice is going to university next year, (rather than ...is going
to go to university...)
Uses of Present Simple for Future
• We use the present simple when we talk about future events that
are part of some definite arrangement such as a timetable or
programme or activity.

e.g.
• Their plane arrives at 2 o'clock in the morning.
• I'm away on holiday next week. Can we meet the week after?
• The sun rises at 5.16 tomorrow
• We use the present simple to refer to the future in adverbial
clauses introduced by time conjunctions such as after,
before, when, and until
and in conditional clauses with if, unless, in case, and
provided.

e.g.
• Wait here until I call you
• Provided the right software is available, I should be able
to solve the problem.
• We use the present simple in that- and wh/-clauses when both
the main clause and the that- /wh-clause refer to the future.

e.g.
• I'll let you know when she gets here, (not ...when she will
get here.)
Future continuous and present continuous for the future

• We can often use either the future continuous or the present


continuous when we talk about planned activities or events in the
future
e.g.
• We will be leaving / are leaving for Istanbul at 7.00 in the
evening.

But we prefer the present continuous to talk about surprising


or unexpected activities or events:
e.g Have you heard the news? Dr Radford is leaving! (rather
than ...will be leaving.)
Be to +infinitive
• Be to + infinitive is used to talk about formal or official
arrangements, formal instructions, and to give orders. It
is particularly common in news reports to talk about future
events.

e.g.
• We don't know where the meteorite is going to land, (not ...the
meteorite is to land.)
• I suppose we will all die eventually, (not ...we are all to die...)
Future perfect
We use the future perfect to say that something will be ended,
completed, or achieved by a particular point in the future

e.g.
• Let's hope the volcanic eruption will have finished before we arrive
on the island.
• Although people are now angry about what he did, I'm sure that
his behaviour will soon have been forgotten. (= passive form)
• By the time you get home I will have cleaned the house from top
to bottom.

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