Future Continuous
The Future Continuous describes actions in progress at a specific time in the future. It is formed with 'will be' + verb-ing.
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The Future Continuous
The future continuous receives comparatively little attention in the classroom, yet native speakers use it a great deal. Command of it lends a noticeably more natural quality to your English.
The affirmative is formed with will + be + verb-ing:
| Affirmative | Contracted Affirmative |
|---|---|
| I will be sleeping | I'll be sleeping |
| you will be sleeping | you'll be sleeping |
| he will be sleeping | he'll be sleeping |
| she will be sleeping | she'll be sleeping |
| it will be sleeping | it'll be sleeping |
| we will be sleeping | we'll be sleeping |
| they will be sleeping | they'll be sleeping |
As with the future simple, the contracted form ('ll be verb-ing) is the norm in speech.
The negative is formed by adding 'not' after 'will':
| Negative | Contracted Negative |
|---|---|
| I will not be sleeping | Iwon't be sleeping |
| you will not be playing | you won't be playing |
| he will not be reading | he won't be reading |
| she will not be working | she won't be working |
| it will not be raining | it won't be raining |
| we won't be cooking | we won't cooking |
| they will not be listening | they won't be listening |
'Will' is placed before the subject to form a 'yes / no' question:
| Yes/No Questions |
|---|
| will I be eating chocolate? |
| will you be studying now? |
| will he be working? |
| will she be doing her homework? |
| will it be raining? |
| will we be meeting at six? |
| will they be cooking? |
For 'wh' questions, the question word goes at the front:
| Wh Questions | |
|---|---|
| Why will I be eating chocolate? | |
| What will you be studying now? | |
| When will he be working? | |
| What will she be doing? | |
| Why will it be raining? | |
| Who will we be meeting? | |
| How will they be travelling? |
Uses of the future continuous
1. The future continuous describes a future action that overlaps a shorter action or a point in time. It normally begins before that second action or time and may continue after it. The parallel with the past continuous is exact. The verb following 'when' takes the present simple.
- I'll be waiting when you arrive.
- At eight o'clock, I'll be eating dinner.
2. The future continuous also presents an event as following naturally from the expected course of things, a use sometimes called the future as a matter of course. The future simple is generally possible too, but the continuous makes clear that no request or offer is intended.
- The Government will be making a statement later.
- When will you be leaving? (This is more polite than 'when will you leave?' because it's definitely not a request for you to leave.)
Stative verbs cannot appear in the future continuous. Where a stative verb is required in one of these contexts, the future simple with 'will' is used instead.