The future continuous tense is an essential part of English grammar that allows us to describe ongoing actions that will occur at a specific time in the future. This tense adds clarity and precision to our communication, making it easier to talk about future plans or predictions.
In this article, you will learn what the future continuous tense is, its structure, uses, and common mistakes, along with practical examples to help you master it.
The future continuous tense describes actions that will be ongoing at a particular time in the future. It is used to indicate that an activity will happen and continue for some duration.
Examples:
- At 8 PM tonight, I will be watching my favorite show.
- Next week, they will be traveling to Europe.
This tense is perfect for emphasizing the process or duration of an action rather than its completion.
Future Continuous Tense is a verb tense that shows that something is happening over the time in future. For instance, she will be cooking tonight. This sentence shows that action (cooking) will be performed in future. Â
Examples:
- He will be going.
- He will be working
- She will be cooking.
- They will be playing.
- We shall be studying.
- Will you be staying?
- It will not be working.
In each sentence of above mentioned examples, there are two things to pay attention;
1. Action is going to happen in near future and,Â
2. There is a continuity in that action.Â
Use of Future Continuous Tense
The question comes in mind that why do we need to use future continuous tense. The answer is we use those tense to describe things or actions that are going to happen in the near future or there is a probability that an action or a thing will occur in the future.
The future continuous tense has various practical uses in English. Let’s explore the most common ones:
1. Describing Actions in Progress at a Specific Time in the Future
This tense helps to indicate that an action will be ongoing at a certain point in the future.
Examples:
- At 10 AM tomorrow, I will be presenting my ideas in the meeting.
- They will be playing soccer when you arrive.
2. Predicting or Guessing Future Situations
It is often used to make educated guesses or assumptions about what might be happening at a future time.
Examples:
- Don’t call them now; they will be sleeping at this hour.
- I think she will be preparing for her test when you visit.
3. Indicating Polite Inquiries or Future Plans
The future continuous tense is also used for polite questions about someone’s future activities.
Examples:
- Will you be using the computer later?
- Will they be joining us for dinner tomorrow?
Common Signal Words and Time Expressions
When using the future continuous tense, you’ll often see time expressions that specify when the action will be in progress. Some common ones include:
- At this time tomorrow
- By this time next week
- Next year at this hour
- At 5 PM tonight
Examples:
- At this time tomorrow, we will be flying to Paris.
- By next month, she will be training for the marathon.
How to Make Future Continuous Tense
The structure of the future continuous tense is straightforward and includes the auxiliary verbs will and be, followed by the present participle (base verb + -ing).
In Future Continuous Tense, we use subject, shall be / will be, and the first form of the verb.
Future Continuous Tense Formula
Here is the structural formula of future continuous tense in English.
Subject + will/shal+ Verb+ Object.
Positive Sentences of Future Continuous Tense
How to make positive sentences in future continuous tense?
When making sentences in future continuous tense, we use will be or shall be to describe things.
In positive sentences, first, we use the subject followed by will be or shall be, and then we use the first form of the verb, also called the base verb.
Examples:
- He will be going to the office.
- He will be opening a new business.
- He will be taking part in the competition.
- He will be winning the match.
- He will be hiring new employees.
Negative Sentences of Future Continuous Tense
We use will not be / shall not be in the negative sentences. For instance, He will not be working, is an example of negative sentence in Future Continuous tense.
Examples:
- He will not be sleeping.
- He will not be working.
- He will not be running errands.
- He will not be reading a book.
- He will not be traveling to Disney.
How to Ask Questions in Future Continuous Tense
In future continuous tense, shall or will is used at the start of the sentence.Â
Examples:
- Will he be working tomorrow?
- Will she be cooking food?
- Will they be participating in the match?
- Shall we be going to the party?
- Shall I be sleeping early tonight
Future Continuous vs. Future Simple
Future simple is used to describe something that will definitely happen in the future.
- He will work.Â
- She will cook.Â
- They will play.Â
On the other hand, future continuous is used to explain things that will probably occur in the future. In other words, these actions may or may not occur in the future. Consider the following examples;
- He will be working.Â
- It will be raining tomorrow.Â
- They will be coming next week.
Future Continuous vs. Future Perfect
We use the future perfect tense when something or some action has been completed. For instance;
- He will have worked.
- He will have gone.
- He will have stayed.
Whereas, in future continuous, the action is happening in the future. Let’s say the same above sentences in the future continuous tense.
- He will be working.
- He will be going.
- He will be staying.
Future Continuous vs. Present Continuous
Future continuous refers to actions in the future. For example;
- Tomorrow at this time, I will be studying.
On the other hand, present continuous refers to action happening now. For instance;
- I am studying right now.
Future Continuous PassiveÂ
Is there any passive form of future continuous tense?
No, future continuous tense is not used in passive sentences because it will not make any sense to explain things correctly. For instance;
- He will be watching a movie tonight.
Common Mistakes with Future Continuous Tense
1. Using the Wrong Form of the Verb
- Incorrect: She will be studies tomorrow.
Correct: She will be studying tomorrow.
2. Confusing Future Continuous with Other Tenses
- Incorrect: At 9 PM tonight, I will study.
Correct: At 9 PM tonight, I will be studying.
3. Misplacing Time Expressions
- Incorrect: She at this time tomorrow will be working.
Correct: At this time tomorrow, she will be working.
Examples of Future Continuous Tense
- He will be working in his office.
- He will be helping others.
- He will be taking part in the competition.
- It will be raining tonight.
- There will be tornado watch tonight.
- They will be cleaning the house.
- They will be painting the house.
- They will be harvesting their crop.
- They will be carrying their luggage.
- They will be receiving donations.
- They will be going fast.
- They will be finishing the job.
- They will be attending the party.
- They will be winning the election.
- She will be eating noodles tonight.
- She will be cooking pasta tonight.
- She will be going to work at 6 a.m.
- She will be washing dishes.
- She will be celebrating her graduation ceremony.
- She will be graduating in May.
- She will be staying with her parents.
Practice Exercises
- Fill in the Blanks:
- At 6 PM tomorrow, we _______ (watch) a movie.
- They _______ (not travel) to New York next week.
- Rewrite in Future Continuous Tense:
- She paints the room.
- He takes an exam.
- Correct the Errors:
- I will be sleeps at midnight.
- Will she working tomorrow?
Conclusion
Future continuous tense is a verb tense that describes actions that will occur in the future and will continue in the future for a certain time. We use the auxiliary verb will/shall be with the present participle to make the future continuous tense.Â
Future continuous tense shows two things: one, the action is ongoing, and second, it will happen in the future.Â
Future continuous tense is not similar to future simple tense in that future simple tells us what will happen in the future for certain. On the other hand, future continuous tense tells us an action will happen in the future and will continue, but that action may or may not happen.Â
The future continuous tense is a powerful tool in English grammar for describing ongoing actions at a specific time in the future. It adds clarity, politeness, and depth to your conversations. By understanding its structure, uses, and common mistakes, you can confidently use this tense to express your ideas about future events.
Keep practicing, and soon you’ll master the art of using the future continuous tense in both written and spoken English.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is future continuous tense?
Future continuous tense is a verb tense in English which describes an action that will occur in near future and will continue for a certain period of time.
What are the 10 examples of future continuous tense?
He will be cooking food tonight.
She will be sleeping.
They will be playing cricket.
How to identify future continous tense?
We identify future continuous tense with its structure. When we see the auxiliary verb “will/shall be + ing verb” in the sentence, it tells us that it is a future continuous tense.
What is the rule of future continuous tense?
The rule of future continuous tense is:
subject + will/shall be + present participle.
In order to make future continuous tense, we use will be or shall be after the subject and before the first form of verb.
I hope this article helped you learn what future continuous tense is, its use, and how to make future continuous sentences.
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