Creating Opportunity Worldwide

Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials

Level: EFT 3
Module number: 4 (1.6; p6)
Language point: Future forms: The future how much do you know?

Future forms
Technically speaking, there are no future tenses in the English language, but
there are future forms unfortunately for learners, there are many future forms
and their use can be rather flexible!
Here we will look at the most useful ones the will 1 and going to futures,
present continuous and present simple.
A. Look at the sample sentences below and identify which verb form is being
used in each sentence will, be + going to, present continuous or present
simple. Write the form in the Future form column in the table.

Sample sentence

1. Ive just heard that well

Future form

Use

1.

will

A prediction

2.

be + going to

A prediction

3.

be + going to

get our Aptis results

tomorrow.
2. Ive just heard from my
DELO were going to get
our Aptis results
tomorrow.

A prediction which
3. Because we dont have

is certain to happen

the funds to repair the

roof, were going to have
1

4.

Present

A decision already

Also known as future simple

1

Contributed by: Phil Abbot

The British Council, 2014
The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities.
British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)

Creating Opportunity Worldwide

Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials

to call a parents

continuo

meeting.

us

made
A decision already

4. Im seeing the DELO later.

5.

be + going to

made

6.

will

5. Tonight Im going to do
some research for my MA.

spontaneous

decision
6. Is it a holiday on Monday?
Hm, not sure; Ill have to
ask my head teacher.

7.

will
The future seen as

7. The ministry will have a

a fact

meeting to talk about

having further
discussions to arrange a
meeting to discuss this

8.

Present
continuous

urgent situation.

The future seen as

a fact

8. This year Raya starts in

June.

B. Now decide which of the following ideas about the future best fits each of
the sentences. Put these ideas in the Use column opposite the correct
sentences you will need to use some of them more than once!

A decision
already
made

A prediction

A prediction
which is
certain to
happen

The future
seen as a
fact

A
spontaneous
decision
2

Contributed by: Phil Abbot

The British Council, 2014
The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities.
British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)

Creating Opportunity Worldwide

Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials

Contributed by: Phil Abbot

The British Council, 2014
The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities.
British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)

Creating Opportunity Worldwide

Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials

C. Now summarise the uses of each of these four future forms:

Future form

1. will

2. be + going to

3. present continuous

4. present simple

Use(s)

A prediction (unless certain to happen)

A spontaneous decision
Future seen as fact

All predictions
All decisions already made

Decision already made

The future seen as a fact

Timetables

D. Now answer this question: In English, the form we use to talk about the
future depends on how you want to see the future: true or false?

[adapted from The Anti-Grammar Grammar Book, Hall & Shepheard, Longman
(1991)]

Contributed by: Phil Abbot

The British Council, 2014
The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities.
British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)