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The Future Tenses


CHAPTER 7.  THE FUTURE TENSES

Just as there are four present tenses and four past tenses in English, there are also four future tenses: the Simple Future, the Future Continuous, the Future Perfect, and the Future Perfect Continuous.

1. The simple future

a. Use

The Simple Future tense is used to express non-continuous actions which will take place in the future. In the following examples, the verbs in the Simple Future tense are underlined.
e.g. They will finish the work tomorrow.
He will arrive next Saturday.

b. Formation

The Simple Future of any verb is formed from the auxiliary will or shall, followed by the bare infinitive of the verb.

In informal English, particularly in American English, the Simple Future is usually conjugated entirely with the auxiliary will. The auxiliary will is a modal auxiliary. Modal auxiliaries do not modify, but have the same form, regardless of the subject.

The auxiliary will is often contracted to ‘ll. Thus, in informal English, the Simple Future of the verb to work is usually conjugated as follows:

Without Contractions With Contractions
  I will work   I’ll work
  you will work   you’ll work
  he will work   he’ll work
  she will work   she’ll work
  it will work   it’ll work
  we will work   we’ll work
  they will work   they’ll work

Verbs used with the subjects I and we are generally referred to as being in the first person; verbs used with the subject you are generally referred to as being in the second person; and verbs used with the subjects hesheit and they are generally referred to as being in the third person.

For formal English, there is a rule which states that in the Simple Future, the auxiliary shall should be used in the first person, and the auxiliary will should be used in the second person and third person. Like the auxiliary will, the auxiliary shall is a modal auxiliary.

Thus, in formal English, the Simple Future of the verb to work may be conjugated as follows:

  I shall work
  you will work
  he will work
  she will work
  it will work
  we shall work
  they will work

Even in informal English, the auxiliary shall is usually used in the first person for questions in which a request for permission is implied.
e.g. Shall I call the office?
Shall we go to the library?

However, the use of will for the first person of the Simple Future is beginning to be considered acceptable in formal English. Thus, except for questions where a request for permission is implied, either will or shall may be used for the first person of the Simple Future. In this chapter, the alternative use of the auxiliary shall in the first person will be indicated by the word shall in brackets.

The rules for the use of will and shall which apply to the Simple Future tense, also apply to the other future tenses.

See Exercise 1.

c. Questions and negative statements

As is the case with other English tenses, questions and negative statements in the Simple Future are formed using the auxiliary.

Questions are formed by placing the auxiliary before the subject. For example:

Affirmative Statement Question
  It will work.   Will it work?
  They will work.   Will they work?

Negative statements are formed by placing the word not after the auxiliary. For example:

Affirmative Statement Negative Statement
  It will work.   It will not work.
  They will work.   They will not work.

In spoken English, the following contraction is often used:

Without Contraction With Contraction
  will not   won’t

The contracted form of will not is unusual, since it is not only the o of not which is omitted. In addition, the ll of will is omitted, and the i of will is changed to o. The contracted form, won’t, is pronounced to rhyme with don’t.

In addition, shall not is sometimes contracted to shan’t. However, the word shan’t is rarely used in modern American English.

Negative questions are formed by placing the auxiliary before the subject, and the word not after the subject. However, when contractions are used, the contracted form of not immediately follows the auxiliary. The following are examples of negative questions with and without contractions:

Without Contractions With Contractions
  Will it not work?   Won’t it work?
  Will they not work?   Won’t they work?

Tag questions are formed using the auxiliary. In the following examples, the negative tag questions are underlined. Contractions are usually used in negative tag questions.

Affirmative Statement Affirmative Statement with Tag Question
  It will work.   It will work, won’t it?
  They will work.   They will work, won’t they?

See Exercises 2 and 3.

2. The conjugation expressing determination and compulsion

In formal English, there is a rule which states that, in order to express determination and compulsion, the auxiliary will is to be used in the first person, and the auxiliary shall is to be used in the second person and third person. This is the reverse of the use of will and shall found in the Simple Future. The use of will in the first person is supposed to express determination, and the use of shall in the second person and third person is supposed to express compulsion.

For instance, for the verb to work, the Simple conjugation which expresses determination and compulsion is as follows:

I will work
you shall work
he shall work
she shall work
it shall work
we will work
they shall work

In this conjugation, the expressions I will work, and we will work, have the meaning I am determined to work, and we are determined to work. In contrast, the expressions you shall work, and they shall work, for instance, have the meaning you will be compelled to work, and they will be compelled to work.

See Exercise 4.

The rule for expressing determination and compulsion which applies to the Simple conjugation, also applies to the Continuous, Perfect, and Perfect Continuous conjugations.

However, particularly in American English, the use of the conjugations expressing determination and compulsion is beginning to be considered old-fashioned.

3. The present continuous of To Go followed by an infinitive

The Present Continuous tense of to go, followed by an infinitive, is often used to refer to an event which is about to happen, or to refer to an action which someone intends to carry out in the future.

The Present Continuous tense of the verb to go is conjugated as follows:

I am going
you are going
he is going
she is going
it is going
we are going
they are going

The examples below illustrate the use of the Present Continuous tense of to go, followed by an infinitive, to refer to a future event. In each of these examples, the Present Continuous of to go is printed in bold type, and the infinitive which follows it is underlined.
e.g. It is going to rain.
am going to write a letter tonight.
They are going to study in France next year.
In the first example, the use of the Present Continuous of to go followed by the infinitive to rain indicates that it is about to rain. In the second and third examples, the use of the Present Continuous of to go followed by the infinitives to write and to study indicates that the actions of writing and studying are intended to be carried out in the future.

See Exercise 5.

It should also be noted that the Past Continuous tense of to go can be used to express actions which were about to happen in the past.
e.g. I was going to write a letter last night.
In this example, the use of the Past Continuous of to go followed by the infinitive to write indicates that the action of writing was intended to be carried out in the past.

4. The future continuous

a. Use

The Future Continuous tense is used to express continuous, ongoing actions which will take place in the future. In the following examples, the verbs in the Future Continuous tense are underlined.
e.g. He will be waiting for us.
They will be arriving tomorrow.

b. Formation

The Future Continuous of any verb is formed from the Simple Future of the auxiliary to be, followed by the present participle of the verb. For instance, the Future Continuous of the verb to work is conjugated as follows:

I will (shall) be working
you will be working
he will be working
she will be working
it will be working
we will (shall) be working
they will be working

See Exercise 6.

It can be seen that the Future Continuous tense has two auxiliaries. The first auxiliary is will or shall, and the second auxiliary is be.

c. Questions and negative statements

As is the case with other English tenses, questions and negative statements in the Future Continuous are formed using the first auxiliary.

Questions are formed by placing the first auxiliary before the subject. For example:

Affirmative Statement Question
  It will be working.   Will it be working?
  They will be working.   Will they be working?

Negative statements are formed by placing the word not after the first auxiliary. For example:

Affirmative Statement Negative Statement
  It will be working.   It will not be working.
  They will be working.   They will not be working.

Negative questions are formed by placing the first auxiliary before the subject, and the word not after the subject. However, when contractions are used, the contracted form of not immediately follows the first auxiliary. For example:

Without Contractions With Contractions
  Will it not be working?   Won’t it be working?
  Will they not be working?   Won’t they be working?

Tag questions are formed using the first auxiliary. In the following examples, the negative tag questions are underlined. Contractions are usually used in negative tag questions.

Affirmative Statement Affirmative Statement with Tag Question
  It will be working.   It will be working, won’t it?
  They will be working.   They will be working, won’t they?

See Exercises 7 and 8.

5. The future perfect

a. Use

The Future Perfect tense is used to refer to a non-continuous action which will be completed by a certain time in the future. In the following examples, the verbs in the Future Perfect tense are underlined.
e.g. She will have finished the work by Wednesday.
will have cleaned the room before the guests arrive.
They will have eaten breakfast by the time he gets up.

In these examples, the use of the Future Perfect indicates that the actions of finishing the work, cleaning the room, and eating breakfast will have been completed before the coming of Wednesday, the arrival of the guests, and his getting up take place.

b. Formation

The Future Perfect of any verb is formed from the Simple Future of the auxiliary to have, followed by the past participle of the verb. For instance, the Future Perfect of the verb to work is conjugated as follows:

  I will (shall) have worked
  you will have worked
  he will have worked
  she will have worked
  it will have worked
  we will (shall) have worked
  they will have worked

See Exercise 9.

c. Questions and negative statements

As is the case with other English tenses, questions and negative statements in the Future Perfect are formed using the first auxiliary.

Questions are formed by placing the first auxiliary before the subject. For example:

Affirmative Statement Question
  It will have worked.   Will it have worked?
  They will have worked.   Will they have worked?

Negative statements are formed by placing the word not after the first auxiliary. For example:

Affirmative Statement Negative Statement
  It will have worked.   It will not have worked.
  They will have worked.   They will not have worked.

Negative questions are formed by placing the first auxiliary before the subject, and the word not after the subject. However, when contractions are used, the contracted form of not immediately follows the first auxiliary. For example:

Without Contractions With Contractions
  Will it not have worked?   Won’t it have worked?
  Will they not have worked?   Won’t they have worked?

Tag questions are formed using the first auxiliary. In the following examples, the negative tag questions are underlined. Contractions are usually used in negative tag questions.

Affirmative Statement Affirmative Statement with Tag Question
  It will have worked.   It will have worked, won’t it?
  They will have worked.   They will have worked, won’t they?

See Exercises 10 and 11.

6. The future perfect continuous

a. Use

The Future Perfect Continuous tense is used to express a continuous, ongoing action which will be completed by a certain time in the future. In the following examples, the verbs in the Future Perfect Continuous tense are underlined.
e.g. By next January, she will have been living here for a year.
You will have been traveling a great deal by the time you return home.
He will have been working for ten months by the time he takes his vacation.

In these examples, the use of the Future Perfect Continuous indicates that the continuous, ongoing actions of living, traveling, and working, will have been completed before the events of the coming of January, your returning home, and his taking a vacation, take place.

b. Formation

The Future Perfect Continuous of any verb is formed from the Future Perfect of the auxiliary to be, followed by the present participle of the verb. For instance, the Future Perfect Continuous of the verb to work is conjugated as follows:

  I will (shall) have been working
  you will have been working
  he will have been working
  she will have been working
  it will have been working
  we will (shall) have been working
  they will have been working

See Exercise 12.

c. Questions and negative statements

As is the case with other English tenses, questions and negative statements in the Future Perfect Continuous are formed using the first auxiliary.

Questions are formed by placing the first auxiliary before the subject. For example:

Affirmative Statement Question
  It will have been working.   Will it have been working?
  They will have been working.   Will they have been working?

Negative statements are formed by placing the word not after the first auxiliary. For example:

Affirmative Statement Negative Statement
  It will have been working.   It will not have been working.
  They will have been working.   They will not have been working.

Negative questions are formed by placing the first auxiliary before the subject, and the word not after the subject. However, when contractions are used, the contracted form of not immediately follows the first auxiliary. For example:

Without Contractions With Contractions
  Will it not have been working?   Won’t it have been working?
  Will they not have been working?   Won’t they have been working?

Tag questions are formed using the first auxiliary. In the following examples, the negative tag questions are underlined. Contractions are usually used in negative tag questions. For example:

Affirmative Statement Affirmative Statement with Tag Question
  It will have been working.   It will have been working, won’t it?
  They will have been working.   They will have been working, won’t they?

See Exercises 13 and 14.

7. Summary of the formation of the English future tenses

The following table summarizes the formation of the English future tenses.

Tense Auxiliary Verb Form
  Simple Future   will (shall)   bare infinitive
  Future Continuous   will (shall) be   present participle
  Future Perfect   will (shall) have   past participle
  Future Perfect Continuous   will (shall) have been   present participle

8. Clauses

If a sentence has only one subject and one verb, it is said to consist of a single clause, called the main or principal clause. A main clause is a clause which can stand alone to form a complete sentence. Each of the following sentences has only one clause. In the following examples, the verbs are underlined.
e.g. It is cold.
The flowers are blooming.

If a sentence contains more than one verb, and each verb has its own subject, the sentence is said to consist of more than one clause. The following sentences each have two clauses. The verbs are underlined.
e.g. He said that he was ready.
The door opened, and my uncle entered the room.

In the first example, he said is the first clause, and that he was ready is the second clause. In the second example, the door opened is the first clause, and my uncle entered the room is the second clause.

a. Coordinate clauses

When two clauses are joined by a word such as andor or but, the two clauses are called coordinate clauses, and the word which joins them is called a coordinate conjunction. In the following examples, the verbs are underlined.
e.g. It is cold, but the flowers are blooming.
The flowers are blooming and the birds are singing.

In the first example, the coordinate conjunction but joins the clause it is cold to the clause the flowers are blooming. In the second example, the coordinate conjunction and joins the clause the flowers are blooming to the clause the birds are singing. The clauses in these examples are coordinate clauses.

b. Subordinate clauses

Coordinate clauses are main clauses. A main clause is grammatically independent, in that it may stand alone to form a complete sentence. In contrast, a clause which describes some part of the main clause, or which is in some other way grammatically dependent on the main clause, is called a subordinate clause. A subordinate clause cannot stand alone to form a complete sentence.

In the following examples, the subordinate clauses are underlined.
e.g. The book which I lent you is a library book.
He told me what he had seen.
If you are ready, we will go.

In the preceding examples, the main clauses are the book is a library bookhe told me and we will go; and the subordinate clauses are which I lent youwhat he had seen and if you are ready. A subordinate clause usually begins with a connecting word or phrase which joins it to the main clause. In the preceding examples, these connecting words are whichwhat and if.

c. The past perfect and the simple past

It has already been seen that the tense of a verb in one clause is related to the tenses of verbs in other clauses in the same sentence. For instance, if one action happened before another in the past, the action that happened first would usually be expressed by a verb in the Past Perfect tense, and the action that happened subsequently would usually be expressed by a verb in the Simple Past tense.

For instance, each of the following sentences has one verb in the Past Perfect tense, and one verb in the Simple Past tense. In the following examples, the verbs are underlined.
e.g. She was late, because she had lost her way.
It had started to snow before we reached the inn.

In the first example, the verb had lost is in the Past Perfect, and the verb was is in the Simple Past. This indicates that the action of losing the way occurred before the action of being late. In the second example, the verb had started is in the Past Perfect, and the verb reached is in the Simple Past. This indicates that the action of starting to snow occurred before the action of reaching the inn.

d. The use of the present in subordinate clauses to express future actions

It should be noted that if the verb in the main clause of a sentence is in a future tense, the verb of any subordinate clause which refers to the future is usually in a present tense. This is illustrated in the following examples. The verbs are underlined.
e.g. We will welcome him when he arrives.
will have finished the work before it is time to leave.

In these examples, the main clauses are we will welcome him and I will have finished the work; and the subordinate clauses are when he arrives and before it is time to leave. In the main clauses, the will welcome is in the Simple Future tense, and the will have finished is in the Future Perfect tense. However, in the subordinate clauses, the verbs arrives and is are both in the Simple Present, even though they refer to future events.

In most cases, the rule is that if the verb in the main clause of a sentence is in a future tense, the verb of any subordinate clause which refers to the future must be in a present tense. There is usually no ambiguity in such sentences, because the fact that the verb in the main clause is in a future tense is generally enough to indicate that all of the actions expressed in the sentence are to take place in the future.

See Exercise 15.

However, there are a few cases in which the verb in a subordinate clause must be put into a future tense in order to avoid ambiguity. For instance, in subordinate clauses beginning with although or because, it is sometimes necessary to use future tenses, to make it clear that the actions expressed relate to the future, rather than the present.

e.g. We will not need to send for her, because she will already be here.
Although he will be in the neighborhood, we will have to search for him.

In these examples, the use of the Simple Future tense in the subordinate clauses because she will already be here and although he will be in the neighborhood is necessary to make it clear that the events of her being here, and his being in the neighborhood, relate to the future rather than the present.

EXERCISES for Chapter 7

  1. Using either the auxiliary shall or the auxiliary will for the first person, fill in the blanks with the Simple Future of the verbs shown in brackets. For example:
    I ___________. (to agree)
    shall agree or I will agree.

You ____________ the results. (to publish)
You will publish the results.

  1. We ___________. (to succeed)
  2. They _________________ the site. (to excavate)
  3. He _________________ the situation. (to study)
  4. We _________________. (to hurry)
  5. I _________________ soon. (to follow)
  6. It _________________ a surprise. (to be)
  7. He _________________ us. (to remind)
  8. She _________________ tomorrow. (to depart)
  9. I _________________ here. (to remain)
  10. They __________________ university. (to enter)

  11. Rewrite the following affirmative statements as questions, negative statements, negative questions without contractions, negative questions with contractions, and affirmative statements followed by negative tag questions. For example:
    She will notice us.
    Will she notice us?
    She will not notice us.
    Will she not notice us?
    Won’t she notice us?
    She will notice us, won’t she?

  12. You will wash the windows.

  13. They will help you.

  14. Using either the auxiliary shall or the auxiliary will for the first person, fill in the blanks with the Simple Future of the verbs shown in brackets. Use shall in the first person for questions in which a request for permission is implied. For example:
    I ________ out soon. (to go)
    shall go out soon. or I will go out soon.

_____ we _____ now? (to leave)
Shall we leave now?

____ they _____ France? (to visit)
Will they visit France?

It ____ not ____ long. (to take)
It will not take long.

  1. We _________________ you at the museum. (to meet)
  2. _______ you _______ me a pen? (to lend)
  3. _______ they not _______ the competition? (to win)
  4. She _______ not ___________ to come. (to forget)
  5. _______ he not _______ the boat? (to sail)
  6. You _________________ the expedition. (to enjoy)
  7. _______ I ________ this? (to order)
  8. _______ you not _______ for me? (to wait)
  9. We _______ not _______ late. (to be)
  10. He ________________ us the news. (to send)
  11. I ______ not _______ my way. (to lose)
  12. _______ they __________ the program? (to watch)
  13. Using the Simple conjugation which expresses determination and compulsion, fill in the blanks with the verbs shown in brackets. For example:
    We _________ the exam. (to pass)
    We will pass the exam.

You ____________ the work on time. (to finish)
You shall finish the work on time.

  1. They ________________ the tickets. (to buy)
  2. I _________________ home. (to go)
  3. He _________________ our guide. (to be)
  4. You _________________ with me. (to come)
  5. I ________________ it. (to remember)
  6. She ________________ us. (to call)
  7. We ________________ the money. (to earn)
  8. They _________________ us. (to respect)
  9. I ________________ you. (to help)
  10. It _______ not __________ us. (to hinder)
  11. We ________________ it. (to find)
  12. You ________ not __________ it. (to regret)
  13. The following sentences refer to future events. Complete each sentence by filling in the blank with the correct form of the Present Continuous tense of to go, followed by the infinitive of the verb shown in brackets. For example:
    She _________________ swimming. (to teach)
    She is going to teach swimming.

___ we _____________ home? (to walk)
Are we going to walk home?

He __ not _____________ us. (to find)
He is not going to find us.

  1. ______ he ____________________ horseback riding? (to learn)
  2. I __________________________ the windows. (to wash)
  3. ______ you ____________________ with us? (to come)
  4. It ______ not ____________________ cold tonight. (to be)
  5. ______ he not ____________________ the letter? (to answer)
  6. We _________________________ to the library. (to go)
  7. ______ she ____________________ a sweater? (to buy)
  8. ______ you not ___________________ us? (to call)
  9. I ______ not ____________________ late. (to stay)
  10. They ________________________ supper. (to cook)
  11. Using either the auxiliary shall or the auxiliary will for the first person, fill in the blanks with the Future Continuous of the verbs shown in brackets. For example:
    We _______________ you tomorrow. (to see)
    We shall be seeing you tomorrow. or We will be seeing you tomorrow.

He _________________ school next year. (to attend)
He will be attending school next year.

  1. You _____________________ with us. (to come)
  2. It _____________________ warmer. (to grow)
  3. They ____________________ new furniture. (to buy)
  4. She _____________________ the clock. (to watch)
  5. I ____________________ downtown. (to go)
  6. You _____________________ the cake. (to cut)
  7. They ____________________ the newspaper. (to read)
  8. We __________________ the museum. (to visit)
  9. Rewrite the following affirmative statements as questions, negative statements, negative questions without contractions, negative questions with contractions, and affirmative statements followed by negative tag questions. For example:
    They will be serving the dessert.
    Will they be serving the dessert?
    They will not be serving the dessert.
    Will they not be serving the dessert?
    Won’t they be serving the dessert?
    They will be serving the dessert, won’t they?

  10. He will be needing this.

  11. They will be living here.

  12. Using either the auxiliary shall or the auxiliary will for the first person, fill in the blanks with the Future Continuous of the verbs shown in brackets. For example:
    I ________________ soon. (to leave)
    shall be leaving soon. or I will be leaving soon.

____ you _________ coffee? (to make)
Will you be making coffee?

He ____ not ________ the bus. (to use)
He will not be using the bus.

  1. He _____________________ a new language. (to learn)
  2. ______ she ___________________ help? (to need)
  3. ______ you not __________________ your jacket? (to mend)
  4. He ______ not ___________________ here. (to stay)
  5. ______ we not ___________________ them a card? (to mail)
  6. They __________________________ the telephone. (to answer)
  7. ______ you ___________________ downtown? (to go)
  8. I _____ not __________________ at the school. (to stop)
  9. ______ she not ___________________ a trip? (to plan)
  10. I ___________________________ the arrangements. (to make)
  11. They ______ not __________________ tired. (to feel)
  12. ______ we ___________________ at the library? (to meet)
  13. Using either the auxiliary shall or the auxiliary will for the first person, fill in the blanks with the Future Perfect of the verbs shown in brackets. For example:
    She _________________ by then. (to arrive)
    She will have arrived by then.

We ______________ everyone. (to meet)
We shall have met everyone or We will have met everyone.

  1. You ________________________ the advertisement. (to study)
  2. He _________________________ the newspapers. (to scan)
  3. I _________________________ here for five years. (to be)
  4. They ________________________ the proposal. (to consider)
  5. It ________________________ raining by tomorrow. (to stop)
  6. You _______________________ your plans. (to make)
  7. I _______________________ the flowers. (to pick)
  8. They ________________________ their minds. (to change)
  9. Rewrite the following affirmative statements as questions, negative statements, negative questions without contractions, negative questions with contractions, and affirmative statements followed by negative tag questions. For example:
    She will have foreseen the difficulty.
    Will she have foreseen the difficulty?
    She will not have foreseen the difficulty.
    Will she not have foreseen the difficulty?
    Won’t she have foreseen the difficulty?
    She will have foreseen the difficulty, won’t she?

  10. It will have happened by then.

  11. You will have paid the rent.

  12. Using either the auxiliary shall or the auxiliary will for the first person, fill in the blanks with the Future Perfect of the verbs shown in brackets. For example:
    He __________________ it soon. (to finish)
    He will have finished it soon.

You ____ not ________ time to read the book. (to have)
You will not have had time to read the book.

____ they __________ before? (to fly)
Will they have flown before?

  1. I ________________________ for a walk. (to go)
  2. They _______ not yet _________________. (to arrive)
  3. _______ she not __________________ the apples? (to eat)
  4. _______ you __________________ the letter? (to send)
  5. They _________________________ an apartment by then. (to find)
  6. He _______ not __________________ soundly. (to sleep)
  7. _______ I  not _________________ you before then? (to see)
  8. _______ he __________________ the puzzle? (to solve)
  9. We _________________________ the parcel by Monday. (to receive)
  10. _______ she not ________________ the chairs? (to sell)
  11. _______ we __________________ the bus schedules? (to study)
  12. You _______ not _________________ the rabbits. (to feed)
  13. Using either the auxiliary shall or the auxiliary will for the first person, fill in the blanks with the Future Perfect Continuous of the verbs shown in brackets. For example:
    You ______________________ all night. (to wait)
    You will have been waiting all night.

They _____________________ a good time. (to have)
They will have been having a good time.

  1. She __________________________________ with them. (to argue)
  2. We __________________________________ the city. (to tour)
  3. He ____________________________________ what happened. (to wonder)
  4. I ___________________________________ inventory. (to take)
  5. It ___________________________________ for two days. (to snow)
  6. They __________________________________ to come. (to long)
  7. You ____________________________________ a speech. (to give)
  8. We ___________________________________ our breath. (to hold)
  9. Rewrite the following affirmative statements as questions, negative statements, negative questions without contractions, negative questions with contractions, and affirmative statements followed by negative tag questions. For example:
    You will have been reading the timetable.
    Will you have been reading the timetable?
    You will not have been reading the timetable.
    Will you not have been reading the timetable?
    Won’t you have been reading the timetable?
    You will have been reading the timetable, won’t you?

  10. He will have been guarding the luggage.

  11. They will have been preparing the meal.

  12. Using either the auxiliary shall or the auxiliary will for the first person, fill in the blanks with the Future Perfect Continuous of the verbs shown in brackets. For example:
    They _______________________ the house. (to clean)
    They will have been cleaning the house.

____ you ________________ to call? (to try)
Will you have been trying to call?

He ____ not _________________ the paper. (to read)
He will not have been reading the paper.

  1. She _________________________________ to help us. (to offer)
  2. _______ it not __________________________ by then? (to snow)
  3. We _______ not ___________________________ to leave. (to plan)
  4. _______ they __________________________ for rain? (to hope)
  5. I __________________________________ my friends. (to visit)
  6. He _______ not ___________________________ the pictures. (to develop)
  7. _______ she _________________________ the hedge? (to clip)
  8. _______ we not _________________________ them often? (to see)
  9. They ________________________________ for twenty-four hours. (to wait)
  10. _______ he not __________________________ down? (to lie)
  11. _______ you _________________________ croquet? (to play)
  12. They _______ not _________________________ here long. (to live)
  13. For each of the following sentences, paying attention to the tense of the underlined verb, complete the sentence correctly by filling in the blank with either the Past Perfect or the Simple Present of the verb shown in brackets. For example:
    When I first met him, he ___ already _________. (to graduate)
    When I first met him, he had already graduated.

We will read the information before we ____ a decision. (to make)
We will read the information before we make a decision.

  1. They ______ already _______________ the letter when they heard the news.
  2. They will wait until he __________________. (to come)
  3. She will help us if we ___________________ for assistance. (to ask)
  4. Although I _______________ him to come, he stayed away. (to beg)
  5. He will send for us as soon as he ____________________ time. (to have)
  6. After I __________________ the grass, it started to rain. (to water)
  7. When we called, they _______ already ________ the house. (to leave)
  8. He will watch while they _______________________ their tricks. (to perform)
  9. By the time I ___________________ everything, it was past nine o’clock. (to organize)
  10. They will signal when they ____________________ ready. (to be)
  11. Even though we _________________ warm clothes, we became quite cold. (to bring)
  12. If it __________________ tomorrow, we will go skiing. (to snow)
  13. We _______ just _________________ supper, when the phone rang. (to finish)
  14. will let you know when I ______________________ it. (to find)

ANSWERS TO THE EXERCISES for Chapter 7

Answers to Exercise 1:
1. shall succeed or will succeed 2. will excavate 3. will study 4. shall hurry or will hurry 5. shall follow or will follow 6. will be 7. will remind 8. will depart 9. shall remain or will remain 10. will enter

Answers to Exercise 2:
1. Will you wash the windows? You will not wash the windows. Will you not wash the windows? Won’t you wash the windows? You will wash the windows, won’t you?
2. Will they help you? They will not help you. Will they not help you? Won’t they help you? They will help you, won’t they?

Answers to Exercise 3:
1. shall meet or will meet 2. Will, lend 3. Will, win 4. will, forget 5. Will, sail 6. will enjoy 7. Shall, order 8. Will, wait 9. shall or will, be 10. will send 11. shall or will, lose 12. Will, watch

Answers to Exercise 4:
1. shall buy 2. will go 3. shall be 4. shall come 5. will remember 6. shall call 7. will earn 8. shall respect 9. will help 10. shall, hinder 11. will find 12. shall, regret

Answers to Exercise 5:
1. Is, going to learn 2. am going to wash 3. Are, going to come 4. is, going to be 5. Is, going to answer 6. are going to go 7. Is, going to buy 8. Are, going to call 9. am, going to stay 10. are going to cook

Answers to Exercise 6:
1. will be coming 2. will be growing 3. will be buying 4. will be watching 5. shall be going or will be going 6. will be cutting 7. will be reading 8. shall be visiting or will be visiting

Answers to Exercise 7:
1. Will he be needing this? He will not be needing this. Will he not be needing this? Won’t he be needing this? He will be needing this, won’t he?
2. Will they be living here? They will not be living here. Will they not be living here? Won’t they be living here? They will be living here, won’t they?

Answers to Exercise 8:
1. will be learning 2. Will, be needing 3. Will, be mending 4. will, be staying 5. Shall or Will, be mailing 6. will be answering 7. Will, be going 8. shall or will, be stopping 9. Will, be planning 10. shall be making or will be making 11. will, be feeling 12. Shall or Will, be meeting

Answers to Exercise 9:
1. will have studied 2. will have scanned 3. shall have been or will have been 4. will have considered 5. will have stopped 6. will have made 7. shall have picked or will have picked 8. will have changed

Answers to Exercise 10:
1. Will it have happened by then? It will not have happened by then. Will it not have happened by then? Won’t it have happened by then? It will have happened by then, won’t it?
2. Will you have paid the rent? You will not have paid the rent. Will you not have paid the rent? Won’t you have paid the rent? You will have paid the rent, won’t you?

Answers to Exercise 11:
1. shall have gone or will have gone 2. will, have arrived 3. Will, have eaten 4. Will, have sent 5. will have found 6. will, have slept 7. Shall or Will, have seen 8. Will, have solved 9. shall have received or will have received 10. Will, have sold 11. Shall or Will, have studied 12. will, have fed

Answers to Exercise 12:
1. will have been arguing 2. shall have been touring or will have been touring 3. will have been wondering 4. shall have been taking or will have been taking 5. will have been snowing 6. will have been longing 7. will have been giving 8. shall have been holding or will have been holding

Answers to Exercise 13:
1. Will he have been guarding the luggage? He will not have been guarding the luggage. Will he not have been guarding the luggage? Won’t he have been guarding the luggage? He will have been guarding the luggage, won’t he?
2. Will they have been preparing the meal? They will not have been preparing the meal. Will they not have been preparing the meal? Won’t they have been preparing the meal? They will have been preparing the meal, won’t they?

Answers to Exercise 14:
1. will have been offering 2. Will, have been snowing 3. shall or will, have been planning 4. Will, have been hoping 5. shall have been visiting or will have been visiting 6. will, have been developing 7. Will, have been clipping 8. Shall or Will, have been seeing 9. will have been waiting 10. Will, have been lying 11. Will, have been playing 12. will, have been living

Answers to Exercise 15:
1. had, mailed 2. comes 3. ask 4. had begged 5. has 6. had watered 7. had, left 8. perform 9. had organized 10. are 11. had brought 12. snows 13. had, finished 14. find


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