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Future Perfect Continuous Tense

December 20, 2013 by Bret Tutor

Future Perfect Continuous Tense

Future Perfect Continuous Tense Man Holding Umbrella In The Rain Medium

How Do We Make The Future Perfect Continuous Tense?

Below you will find the structure of the future perfect continuous:

subject + auxiliary verb WILL + auxiliary verb HAVE + auxiliary verb BE + main verb
invariable invariable past participle present participle
will have been base + ing

Question sentences using the future perfect continuous tense require us to exchange the subject and will. Negative sentences in this tense require us to insert not between will and have. Below are some examples of the future perfect continuous tense:

subject auxiliary verb auxiliary verb main verb
+ They will have been cooking all afternoon.
+ He will have been flying for 12 hours.
– We will not have been sewing with the sewing machine.
– She will not have been expecting your call.
? Will
(auxiliary verb)
they(subject) have been watching the baby?
? Will
(auxiliary verb)
she(subject) have been cooking dinner?

In using the future perfect continuous tense in conversation, most people contract the subject and auxiliary verb:

I will I’ll
you will you’ll
he will he’ll
she will she’ll
it will it’ll
we will we’ll
they will they’ll

Negative sentences using the future perfect continuous tense also use the contraction won’t:

I will not I won’t
you will not you won’t
he will not he won’t
she will not she won’t
it will not it won’t
we will not we won’t
they will not they won’t

Use Of Future Perfect Continuous Tense

When we need to talk about a long activity that will happen before a specific time in the future we use the future perfect continuous tense. For example:

  • Jane will have been sleeping for two hours by the time you arrive.
  • She will need a shower when she gets here. She will have been working at the hospital all day.
[slickquiz id=39]

Filed Under: Tenses Tagged With: Future Perfect Continuous Tense, Grammar, Tenses

Future Continuous Tense

December 20, 2013 by Bret Tutor

Future Continuous Tense

Future Continuous Tense Woman Eating Burger Medium


How do we make the Future Continuous Tense?

The future continuous tense follows this structure:

subject + auxiliary verb WILL + auxiliary verb BE + main verb
invariable invariable present participle
will be base + ing

Question sentences in the future continuous tense require us to exchange the subject and will. Negative sentences in the future continuous tense require us to add not between will and be. See below for examples of the future continuous tense:

subject
auxiliary verb
auxiliary verb
main verb
+ They will be eating at Joe’s Restaurant.
+ She will be playing soccer at the park.
– You will not be driving to school.
– They will not be hosting a Halloween party.
? Will(auxiliary verb) they(subject) be running a marathon?
? Will(auxiliary verb) she(subject) be playing video games?

In the future continuous tense the subject and will are often contracted when we speak:

I will I’ll
you will you’ll
he will he’ll
she will she’ll
it will it’ll
we will we’ll
they will they’ll

When speaking in negative sentences, the future continuous tense allows us to use won’t as shown below:

I will not I won’t
you will not you won’t
he will not he won’t
she will not she won’t
it will not it won’t
we will not we won’t
they will not they won’t

How do we use the Future Continuous Tense?

The future continuous tense describes an activity that is taking place at a specific moment in the future. The activity will begin before the moment you are referring to and will continue after that moment. For example, consider that I go to school at 9 a.m. tomorrow and leave school at 11:30 a.m.:

At 10 a.m. tomorrow, I will be at school.
past present future
 9 a.m.—– 10 a.m. ——11:30 a.m.
At 10 a.m. I will be at school.

When we use the future continuous tense the time of which we are talking about is usually understood by the person listening to our conversation. Here are more examples of the future continuous tense:

  • She will be watching TV tomorrow at noon.
  • You won’t be eating dinner at 8:30 p.m.
  • What will she be watching on TV tonight?
  • What will they be studying before I get there?
  • He will not be sleeping when you come home.
  • They will be eating snacks when the party begins.
  • Bring your dancing shoes. The music will be playing when you get to the party.
[slickquiz id=38]

Filed Under: Tenses Tagged With: Future Continuous Tense, Grammar, Tenses

Future Simple Tense

December 19, 2013 by Bret Tutor

Future Simple Tense

Future Simple Tense Man Holding Money Medium


The future simple tense is formed with the modal auxiliary will. That is the reason why we often call the future simple tense will or will tense.

How Is The Future Simple Tense Formed?

The future simple tense follows the structure described below:

subject + auxiliary verb WILL + main verb
invariable base
will V1

Question sentences in the future simple tense require us to exchange the auxiliary verb and the subject. Sentences that are negative sentences require us to add not between the auxiliary and main verb. Below are examples of the future simple tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb
+ She will buy the food.
+ I will arrive tomorrow.
– They will not eat anything with peanuts.
– You will not paint the room today.
? Will(auxiliary verb) they(subject) fly to Paris?
? Will(auxiliary verb) you(subject) request a bigger bed?

It is common to contract the subject and the auxiliary verb when we are using the future simple tense in conversation:

I will I’ll
you will you’ll
he will he’ll
she will she’ll
it will it’ll
we will we’ll
they will they’ll

If you are speaking using a negative sentence, the contraction to use is won’t as shown in the examples below:

I will not I won’t
you will not you won’t
he will not he won’t
she will not she won’t
it will not it won’t
we will not we won’t
they will not they won’t

When Should The Future Simple Tense Be Used?

When There Is No Plan

The future simple tense is used when we impulsively make a decision as we speak. It is not used to express a plan we have made ahead of time. Instead, it is used for something that we think of at the moment. Here are a few examples of the future simple tense used when there is n0 plan:

  • Wait. I will go with you.
  • They will see what they need to do.
  • Maybe we will eat some ice cream and stop by your house.

The examples above show how there was no plan in place before we started speaking. Rather, decisions were made as we spoke. The future simple tense is used very often with the verb think as in the examples below:

  • I think I will buy those shoes.
  • They think they will go to the Fair tonight.
  • We don’t think we will join them for dinner.

For Predictions

The future simple tense is very useful in making predictions. Although there is no certainty or plan for the future, we use the future simple tense to share our thoughts of what we think will happen. For example:

  • You will be late to the party.
  • He won’t go to college if he doesn’t study.
  • Who will make it to the next round?

The Main Verb Is Be

The future simple tense can be used with the verb be to express a decision or concrete action we will take. For example:

  • He will be driving at 5:00 p.m.
  • They will be in town, but they won’t be joining you for dinner.
  • Will you be comfortable in this room?
[slickquiz id=36]

Filed Under: Tenses Tagged With: Future Simple Tense, Grammar, Tenses

Past Perfect Continuous Tense

December 19, 2013 by Bret Tutor

Past Perfect Continuous Tense

Past Perfect Continuous Tense Man Ready To Run Medium

Constructing the Past Perfect Continuous Tense

To construct the past perfect continuous tense, use the guidelines below:

subject + auxiliary verb HAVE + auxiliary verb BE + main verb
conjugated in simple past tense past participle present participle
had been base + ing

The past perfect continuous tense for sentences that are negative are constructed by placing not after the first auxiliary verb. To form a question in past perfect continuous tense we switch the places of the first auxiliary verb and the subject. Below are some examples of sentences using past perfect continuous tense:

subject auxiliary verb
auxiliary verb
main verb
+ Bill had been skiing.
+ She had been working.
– We had not been skiing today.
– It had not been raining.
? Had(auxiliary verb) they(subject) been working?
? Had(auxiliary verb) he(subject) been skiing?

When we communicate using the past perfect continuous tense, we often contract the first auxiliary verb and the subject:

they had been they’d been
we had been we’d been
it had been
he had been
she had been
it’d been
he’d been
she’d been
you had been you’d been
I had been I’d been

Using the Past Perfect Continuous Tense

The past perfect continuous tense is similar to the past perfect tense, except it illustrates a longer action that occurred in the past before another action that occurred in the past.

Look at the first two sentences that are used to form a past perfect continuous sentence in the third sentence:

  • Jim started working 7am.
  • I arrived at 10am.
  • By the time I arrived, Jim had been working for three hours. (past perfect continuous)
By the time I arrived, Jim had been working for three hours.
past present future
Jim started working at 7am in the past.

7am 10am

______________________________

I arrived at 10am in the past.

Here are a few more examples of the past perfect continuous tense:

  • I was sleepy at work. I had been working on the project all night.
  • John was winded because he had been jogging.
  • Jack crashed his car yesterday. He had been drinking with his friends.
  • Had he been sleeping well?

The past perfect continuous tense can be seen like the present perfect continuous tense at times. The difference is the past point of view instead of a now point of view.
For example, imagine meeting your friend and she says:

  • I am upset that you’ve already eaten. I have been wanting to take you to dinner.

Later, you tell another friend:

  • Sara was upset because she had been wanting to take me to dinner.
[slickquiz id=35]

Filed Under: Tenses Tagged With: Grammar, Past Perfect Continuous, Tenses

Past Perfect Tense

December 19, 2013 by Bret Tutor

Past Perfect Tense

Past Perfect Tense Happy Doctor Medium

When we discuss the past in the past we use the past perfect tense. Use it to talk about one event or action in the past that happened before another one in the past.

How do we make the Past Perfect Tense?

The following guideline is used to construct the past perfect tense:

subject + auxiliary verb HAVE + main verb
conjugated in simple past tense past participle
had V3

To create negative sentences using past perfect tense, place not between the main and auxiliary verbs. To ask a question, switch the place of the subject and auxiliary verb. For example, the following sentences are all in the past perfect tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb
+ She had worked Christmas Eve.
+ I had played before.
– We had not eaten dinner.
– She had not worked that day.
? Had
(auxiliary verb)
they
(subject)
played before?
? Had
(auxiliary verb)
you
(subject)
seen them before?

To communicate in the past perfect tense, we often contract the subject and the auxiliary verb:

She had
He had
She’d
He’d
I had I’d
We had
They had
We’d
They’d

How Do We Use The Past Perfect Tense?

The past perfect tense is used to illustrate an action in the past that occurred before another action in the past, or the past in the past. Look at the first two sentences and how they form an example of the past perfect tense in the third sentence:

  • We ate dinner at 6pm.
  • The movie started at 7pm.
  • When the movie started, we had eaten dinner. (past perfect)
When the movie started we had eaten dinner.
past present
future
The movie started in the past at 7pm.

6pm 7pm

__________ _____________

We ate in the past at 6pm.

Here are a few more examples:

  • I won the game because I had played it before.
  • We arrived late, we had missed our bus.
  • I had arrived earlier than Jim.
  • I had already finished dinner when she called.
  • Jenny did not know him. She had never seen him before today.

The past perfect tense can be thought of as the present perfect tense. The difference is that the point of view is in the past instead of now.

past perfect tense present perfect tense

had

seen

>

has

seen

>

___________  ______
past now future past now future

Imagine that your friend asked you to dinner, but you tell her:

  • I have already eaten dinner.

Later, she says to another friend the following in the past perfect tense:

  • I asked Bob to go to dinner, but he had already eaten.

When we use reported speech we often use the past perfect tense. There are certain verbs such as imagined, thought, wondered, asked, told and said that are used in this type of structure.

  • I told them I had been ill.
  • She explained that she had missed her bus.
  • I didn’t realize they had met before.
  • I asked if she had eaten yet.
  • She wondered when she had met him before.
[slickquiz id=32]

Filed Under: Tenses Tagged With: Grammar, Past Perfect Tense, Tenses

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