English Has No Future Tense
The future is time still to come. English marks it with auxiliary verbs rather than with a tense ending.
The future is the time yet to come. Grammatically English handles it without a tense: unlike French or Latin, English has no future verb ending. Instead it uses auxiliaries and other constructions — *will go*, *is going to go*, *leaves tomorrow*, *is about to leave* — which is why linguists often say English has past and non-past tenses only.
- Time to come. *Plan for the future.*
- Prospects. *A bright future.*
- Futures — financial contracts. *Trading in futures.*
- Future as a modifier. *Future generations.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | future | A distant future. |
| Plural | futures | Commodity futures. |
| Adjective | future | Future plans. |
| Related | futurism | Italian futurism. |
| Related | futile | A futile attempt. |
How it is used in a sentence
- I will call tomorrow.Auxiliary *will*.
- The train leaves at six.Present form, future meaning.
- A futures contract fixes a price in advance.Finance.
Ways English expresses the future
- will — a plain prediction or decision
- going to — an intention or evidence-based expectation
- present continuous — an arrangement: *I am meeting her at six*
- present simple — a timetable: *the train leaves at six*
- about to — the immediate future
From Latin *futurus*, about to be, a future participle of *esse*, to be — the same irregular verb that had to coin *ens* for *entity*.
Does English have a future tense?
Not in the strict grammatical sense. It uses auxiliaries and other constructions rather than a verb ending.
Will or going to?
Will suits predictions and decisions made at the moment of speaking. Going to suits prior intentions and present evidence.