Future 1 - GA12
Aspect and Tenses Course Grammar | Phrasal Verbs
Grammar
These Activities focus on the grammar of English. English grammar compared to other grammars is quite simple, but in its simplicity lies its complexity. The Activities here cover all aspects of English grammar from the aspects and tenses to sentence structures. English grammar covers the structure of words, phrases, clauses, sentences, and entire texts. There are eight parts of speech in English: nouns, determiners, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, and conjunctions. The largest of these parts of speech are the nouns which, unlike most European languages, do not have grammatical gender. English grammar has largely done away with the inflectional case system of other European languages and bases its grammar on analytic constructions. The Activities in this category will go some way to helping you get a better understanding of English grammar.
Phrasal Verbs
Phrasal verbs are like idioms and have to be learnt individually. They are an essential part of your English vocabulary, and without them you will not be able to say that you have any degree of fluency in English. These Activities have been designed to make learning, remembering, and using phrasal verbs as easy and enjoyable as possible. English speakers use phrasal verbs all the time, so you need to at least be able to understand what they mean. Use them yourself and you will sound much more like a native speaker and your English will sound much more natural.
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In the previous Grammar Activation Packs I have introduced you to the present and the past tenses, along with the simple, continuous, and perfect aspects. I also mentioned that English has only the two tenses, present and past. So where does this leave us when we want to talk about the future? Don’t worry, there are several ways that we can talk about the future, including using the present tense, which is what I am going to explain in this lesson. There are two aspects of the present tense that we can use to talk about the future. We can use the simple aspect which uses the auxiliary verb do. We can also use the continuous aspect, which uses the auxiliary verb be, and the ing form of a non-finite verb.
Aspect and Tenses CourseTalking about the Future 1
Grammar Activation Pack 12
English has no Future!
In the previous Grammar Activation Packs I have introduced you to the present and the past tenses, along with the simple, continuous, and perfect aspects.
I also mentioned that English has only the two tenses, present and past.
So where does this leave us when we want to talk about the future?
Don’t worry, there are several ways that we can talk about the future, including using the present tense, which is what I am going to explain in this lesson.
Present Tenses for Future
There are two aspects of the present tense that we can use to talk about the future.
We can use the simple aspect which uses the auxiliary verb do, even when it is hidden, as it is below.
The festivities start next week.
We can also use the continuous aspect, which uses the auxiliary verb be, and the ing form of a non-finite verb.
The festivities are starting next week.
Both of these statements are talking about future events.
Present Simple Future Time
The following sentence talks about something we know with absolute certainty about the future.
The festivities start next week.
The start date of the festivities is arranged or planned and is unalterable.
Notice that it also uses a future time indicator to make the future clear.
These future time indicators are often known as adverbials of time or time adverbials. We can also use noun phrases as time adverbials.
Present Continuous for Future
Likewise, we can talk about future arrangements using the present continuous if we use future time indicators to make it clear that we are talking about the future.
The festivities are starting next week.
Without the future time indicator the sentence would suggest that the action was happening at the present, which is what the present continuous normally talks about.
The festivities are starting.
Future Time Indicators
To use the present simple or the present continuous to talk about the future, we usually use a future time indicator if we want to make it clear what time we are talking about.
Future time indicators often use phrases with prepositions such as at, on, and in, along with expressions using next and this.
At
The preposition at is used to introduce time indicators when we talk about times on the clock, mealtimes, and in some fixed phrases.
The festivities start at six o’clock.
The festivities are starting at six o’clock.
The festivities start at lunchtime.
The festivities are starting at lunchtime.
The festivities start at the weekend.
The festivities are starting at Christmas.
On
The preposition on is used to introduce time indicators when we talk about days of the week and special days, along with specific dates.
The festivities start on Monday.
The festivities are starting on Monday.
The festivities start on New Year’s Day.
The festivities are starting on July 29th.
The festivities start on 1st January.
The festivities are starting on a Tuesday.
In
The preposition in is used to introduce time indicators when we talk about seasons, years, centuries, months, and parts of the day.
The festivities start in winter this year.
The festivities are starting in 2025.
The festivities start in spring next year.
The festivities are starting in August.
The festivities start in the evening at 6.
The festivities are starting in the spring.
This
The pronoun this is used to introduce time indicators when we talk about days of the week, weeks, months, years, weekends, and seasons.
The festivities start this Friday.
The festivities are starting this week.
The festivities start this year.
The festivities are starting this weekend.
The festivities start this Monday at 7 pm.
The festivities are starting this summer.
This means the closest upcoming period or, with week, month, and year, the period already in progress.
This Coming
The phrase this coming is used to introduce time indicators when we talk about days of the week, weeks, months, years, weekends, and seasons.
The festivities start this coming Friday.
The festivities are starting this coming week.
The festivities start this coming year.
The festivities are starting this coming weekend.
The festivities start this coming Monday at 7 pm.
The festivities are starting this coming summer.
This coming means the closest upcoming period.
Next
The adjective next is used to introduce time indicators when we talk about days of the week, weeks, months, years, weekends, and seasons.
The festivities start next Friday.
The festivities are starting next week.
The festivities start next year.
The festivities are starting next weekend.
The festivities start next Monday at 7 pm.
The festivities are starting next summer.
The… After Next
The expression the… after next is used to introduce time indicators when we talk about an even later time than that indicated by next on its own.
The festivities start the Friday after next.
The festivities are starting the week after next.
The festivities start the year after next.
The festivities are starting the weekend after next.
After next means the period following the closest upcoming period.
A week on…
When we talk about days a week or more after a day in this week, we can use a week/two weeks on… time indicator.
The festivities start two weeks on Friday.
The festivities are starting a week on Friday.
The festivities start three weeks on Friday.
The festivities are starting two weeks on Saturday.
X weeks on means that many weeks after the next closest mentioned day.
A week next…
When we talk about days some distance in the future, we can use a week/two weeks next… time indicator.
The festivities start a week next Friday.
The festivities are starting a week next Friday.
The festivities start two weeks next Friday.
The festivities are starting three weeks next Saturday.
X weeks next means that many weeks after the next mentioned day.
Implied Future
With the present continuous, certain verbs do not need to use a future time indicator as the future is implicit in the statement.
Verbs like meet, and phrasal verbs like pick up.
I am meeting him at the cinema.
I am picking him up from the airport.
Other Futures
There are other ways to talk about the future, too.
Will
Going to
Modals
May, Might, Could, Should…
Certain verbs:
Hope, Expect, Want, Plan…
Conditional clauses
I am going to talk about these in future Grammar Activation Packs.
Aspect and Tenses
A comprehensive English course covering the tenses and aspects of English in an easy-to-understand format with lots of self-test exercises to check your understanding. You will learn all you need to know about the 3 Key Verbs of English: Be, Do, Have. This course will let you see just how simple English grammar is. We will explore the present simple, the past simple, the present continuous, the post continuous, the present perfect and the present perfect past and present, along with present perfect time markers, the present perfect continuous, the past perfect and the past perfect continuous.
Aspects and Tenses - GA1
Welcome to the first in my series of Grammar Activation Packs at Britlish.com. Together, the Grammar Activation Packs combine to provide you with a clear overview of English grammar in use. When I teach grammar to my students, I first teach them what I call the three keys to English grammar. The three keys are the three verbs, do, be, and have. Understand these three verbs and you will see just how easy English grammar really is. I have created some fun exercises to help you activate what you have learnt. This British English grammar is essential for all students of English and the many exercises in the pack will help you master it quickly and enjoyably.
Future 2 - GA13
In the previous Grammar Activation Packs I have introduced you to the present and the past tenses, along with the simple, continuous, and perfect aspects. I also mentioned that English has only the two tenses, present and past. This lesson looks at Will or Shall for Future, Asking for Decisions, Promises and Threats, Decisions Made at the Moment, Predicting, Conditionals, Giving Orders or Instructions, Negative Will for Refusals, Negative Shall for Refusals, things Not Rooted in Present, and Future Time Indicators. This British English grammar is essential for all students of English and the many exercises in the pack will help you master it quickly and enjoyably.
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