Future perfect rules for using clue words. The Future Perfect Tense

There are quite a few ways to express future events in English, and each of them is responsible for its own, strictly limited, domain. Today we will study the aspect that allows us to indicate the completion of a given action by a specified future time. Expressions with this meaning are typical examples of the future perfect, often found both in texts and in English speech. Let's get acquainted with their design, situations of use and the contexts they convey. The form of this tense is not at all complicated, but very useful for enriching speech.

English grammar allows you to use the future perfect in both active and passive predicates. Let us consider separately how these types differ and what their construction patterns look like in sentences of various types.

Active voice

If it is necessary to express the action of the subject in the affirmative form, then to compose the predicate you will need to take three elements: the founding verb of the future tense will, the auxiliary have and the past participle (participle II). According to the meaning of the aspect, translation into Russian will be carried out using perfective verbs.

  • Our workers (1) will (2) have (3) finished (4) excavations by the next Friday Our workers will complete the excavation by next Friday.

The construction will be the same for all numbers and types of persons of nouns and pronouns, as evidenced by the example sentences below.

  • She will have cooked the chicken by 7 o’clock –Shewill cookchickenby 7hours.
  • I will have watched the film before the guests come –II'll watch itmoviebeforeTogo,Howwill comeguests.

Do not forget that when using subordinate clauses in the future tense, their predicate cannot have the form with will, therefore it is always expressed in one of the present forms.

When creating questions, the perfect future aspect is no different from other future tenses and also moves will to the beginning of the phrase. If a sentence contains a special question, then it takes first place, and will comes after it.

  • Will you have learned the unit by the evening? –Youyou'll learnthistopicToin the evening?
  • When will he have written his book? –WhenHewill writemya book?

Expressions of negative shades are also constructed according to the rule already known to us: will + not; for the first person, the use of shall + not is rare. Both in writing and in colloquial speech, abbreviations like won’t/shan’t are often used.

  • Weshallnothaveopenedtheshopuntilwe lay out the goods “We won’t open the store until we distribute the goods.”
  • The train won’t have yet arrived by the time I finish work –TrainmoreNotwill comeTothattime,HowII'll finishwork.

And the last possible construction is interrogative sentences for negation in the future perfect. Their use can often be found in colloquial speech, meaning “isn’t it ...?”. Pay attention to the behavior of the particle not in the full and abbreviated forms of the predicate.

  • Will you not have yet sent the fax by Wednesday? –Isn't itYoumoreNotyou will sendthisFaxToenvironment?
  • Won'tshehavecutherhairbeforeshegoestothebirthday? “Won’t she get her hair cut before she goes to the birthday party?”

Let us dwell a little on the application of this aspect, although the main purpose of the future perfect has already been outlined by the examples given in the material. In the active voice, its use is dictated by only one situation: it is necessary to express an event that will begin in the future and end by the time period specified in the expression. This period can be indicated either by a specific time moment or by the presence of a second action.

However, sometimes moments arise that require the use of this construction, but in the passive. Let's consider them further.

Passive voice

Predicates of such forms express actions performed on an object, but not by himself, but by a third party. Since in passive sentences the object of actions comes to the fore, the subject performing these actions will be expressed not by the subject, but by the object. In addition to syntactic rearrangements, the basic form of the predicate also changes.

To construct the future perfect passive, you need to take the construction of the active voice statement and add just one element to it - the third form of to be.

  • The building (1) will (2) have (3) been (4) built (5) by the company “Leen” in two years(6) – This building will be built by the Lin company in two years.

Please note that in these constructions the preposition by helps to denote not only time, but also the main performer. Often, for various reasons, the actor may not be indicated at all.

  • The picture will have been exhibited in the city’s museum by the next month –TOnextmonththispaintingwillexhibitedVurbanmuseum.

Such sentences can also have interrogative and negative forms.

  • Will the album have been recorded by Jack MacGrain by the 2019 year? –Thisalbumwillrecorded byJackMcGraneby 2019year?
  • The film won’t have been shown by the Second Channel until autumn begins –ThismovieNotwillshownSecondchannel,ByeNotwill beginautumn.

So, we have analyzed both voices, which will be quite enough for an average level of knowledge of English. For those who claim a higher grammatical level, it would not be amiss to mention one more meaning of this aspect of time.

There is a special case of putting sentences in the future perfect of the active voice. We are talking about its use to convey the modal expression must have done. In Russian, the analogue of this combination will be the introductory words “ more likely», « probably», « there must be", i.e. the speaker assumes that the specified actions were performed. It is noteworthy that in this construction the meaning is the opposite of the form: the future tense expresses past events.

  • They will have noticed many mistakes in my letter –They,Maybe,noticeda buncherrorsVmyletter.
  • Shewillhavereadaboutthesecasesinthemagazines “She must have read about these cases in magazines.”

Note that such expressions are extremely rare in speech, but are quite actively used in journalistic, scientific and artistic texts.

Future Perfect examples of time indicators

Each category of tenses in English has its own signal words, i.e. circumstances of the time by which it is easy to determine the use of this group. Here is a short list of satellites of the future perfect tense, expressed by prepositions and subordinate conjunctions.

  • by the time, by the end, by …day, month, year and etc. - by this time, by the end, by day, month, year, etc. The most frequently used preposition with the perfect future;
  • until/till – as long as (indicates the onset of the second action);
  • before – before, before;
  • when – when, while.

Having memorized the listed conjunctions and prepositions, you will be able to navigate the use of this aspect much easier. Good luck in improving your language!

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Hello my beloved readers.

What do you remember about Future Perfect time? Of course, it’s sad if the pain is not enough, but don’t despair. Today I will remind you of everything. This tense cannot be confused with anything - neither Simple nor Continuous. Because it's special. And I'll tell you why. We are waiting for rules and examples, a couple of useful exercises, and so many useful things that you will not forget about this time.

How is it formed

Let's start, perhaps, by finding out what the Future Perfect Tense looks like in a sentence. The procedure for its formation is very simple. See:

Subject + auxiliary verb will\shall + have + predicate in the 3rd form + object and circumstances.

Let's look at example sentences.

She will have read the book until the end of next week. - By the end of next week she will have finished reading the book.

They will have moved in by Wednesday evening. - They will be moving in by Wednesday evening.

We shall have repaired the car by the end of next week. - By the end of next week we will finish repairing the car.

And in the table you can see how a sentence can change depending on its affirmative, negative or interrogative form.

The negative form is formed by adding a particle not .

Well, to create a question, you just need to move the auxiliary verb will to the first place, leaving everything else in its place.

As I said, there is nothing complicated here. Now that we know what our time looks like, we can move on to practice.

When to use: beginner level

As in any time, Future Perfect has its own indicators, by which it is easy to calculate that this is exactly it.

He will have graduated from school by that time. - By this time he has already finished school.

  • Tense is used mainly when we are talking about an action that starts in the future and ends there.

She will have watched the movie by Saturday evening. - By Saturday evening she will have already watched the film.

They will have opened a brand new factory by the next month. - By next month they will have opened a completely new factory.

  • We can also use the Future Perfect when talking about a situation that continues until a certain time.

This time next week I shall have worked at this factory for 15 years. - At this time next week, I will have been working at this plant for 15 years.

This time tomorrow he will have traveled the world non-stop for 3 years. - Tomorrow at this time he will be traveling around the world non-stop for 3 years.

This time next January I shall have moved to another country. - This time next January I will move to another country.

When to use: Professional level

Using the Future Perfect doesn't become so easy when you reach a high level of English.

  • For those who are far from new to this tense, it will be useful to know: sometimes the Future Perfect can act in the meaning of a modal phrase must have done, the translation of which can be defined as “must be\probably.”

You will have seen what happened to them. “You must have seen what happened to them.”

They will have moved to another city. - They must have moved to another city.

As you probably already guessed, this time does not have many functions. Therefore, it will not be difficult for you to remember it. But it will be extremely useful to consolidate what you have learned. Now you can test your knowledge.

and what I have prepared for you. Go through them and share your results in the comments.

And if you have questions, write. I will be happy to answer them. And I will be glad to see the most determined ones among my blog subscribers. You will receive the latest and most useful information from the world of the English language.

And that's all for me.

Until next time, my dear readers.

The future perfect tense is far from the most common tense form of expressing future events in English speech, since the scope of its use is quite narrow and specific. The predicate used in the Future Perfect form helps to express the fact that by a certain moment in the future the action will be completed, over. Consider the following example: The example given shows a time gap between one action in the future (we get to the cinema/we'll go to the cinema ) and others ( the film will have started / the film will already begin

). As can be judged from the given context, Future Perfect Tense serves to denote precedence in the future, it is a kind of “past in the future.” Well, now let's talk about everything in order.

Affirmative sentence will In order to understand the principle of the formation of sentences with a predicate in the future perfect tense, it is enough to know the features of the formation of tenses and, since this form combines elements of these two tense forms: auxiliary verb haveand perfect infinitive (Infinitive Perfect) – V 3

(where V 3 is the third form of the semantic verb or, in other words, the past participle).and perfect infinitive (Infinitive Perfect) –

will haveSaalways leaves for school at 7.30 in the morning, so she won’t be at home at 7.45 a.m. She'll have gone to school. Sarah always leaves for school at 7.30 in the morning, so she won't be home at 7.45. She will go to school.
Next year Paul and Jessica will have been married for 40 years. Next year there will bePaul and Jessica have been married for 40 years.
Ann usually has lunch at 12.30. It takes her about half an hour. So, at 1.15 she'll have already finished her lunch Ann usually has lunch at 12.30. It takes her about half an hour. Therefore, at 1.15 she will have already finished her lunch.
I’m packing my suitcases for the journey. The taxi will come in two hours. By the time the taxi arrives I'll have packed my suitcases. I'm packing my bags for the trip. The taxi will arrive in two hours. I'll have my bags packed by the time the taxi arrives.

Negation

To form a negative sentence with a predicate in the Future Perfect, you need to add the negative particle not to the auxiliary verb will. This will result in the following construction as a result of merging and abbreviating words:

won't have V 3

Questions

Different types of questions in the future perfect tense are formed, as in other tense forms, due to the base of the general question. General question, which is characterized by the absence of a question word and the need to answer Yes/No, is formed by setting the verb will before the subject.

Will + S + have V 3...? Will John have repaired his car by the time Jane returns from her work? –Yes, he will. Will John have his car repaired by the time Jane gets home from work?- Yes.
Will you have had your breakfast at 8 o’clock? –No, I won't. Will you have had breakfast by 8 o'clock?

- No.

Special question It is distinguished by the presence at the very beginning of the sentence of a question word or interrogative construction, for example:

Alternative question containing a conjunction or/or, placed between two or more choice objects, is constructed identically to the structure of a general question, for example:

Question to the subject as a type of special question, it is distinguished by the apparent absence of the subject itself in the structure of the question, because the subject here is expressed by a question word Who (who)/What (what) , For example:

As can be judged from the last example, What can appear not only in the meaning of “what”, but also in the meaning of “which” in combination with a noun or a phrase containing a noun. Such a question will also belong to the group of questions to the subject.

Separated question, which usually helps to doubt the content of a certain sentence, consists of an auxiliary verb in the form won't And subject represented by a personal pronoun , if the base sentence does not contain a negation, for example:

and an auxiliary verb in the affirmative form will followed by a subject expressed by a pronoun if the base sentence contains a negation, for example:

Use

An action that will be completed completely by a certain point in time in the future or before the start of another action in the future - this is the only scope of application of the Future Perfect. Often such a limitation of one action in the future by another later action is indicated by the preposition by (to, to), by the time (by the time), before (before) , For example:

The future perfect tense, to some extent, is opposed to the future continuous (Future Continuous), which can be seen in the following table:

Future Perfect (will have V 3) Future Continuous (will be Ving)
an action in the future will end at a certain point action in the future continues at a certain point
Phone me after 8 o’clock. I'll have finished dinner by then. Don’t phone me between 7 and 8 p.m. I'll be having dinner then.
Call me after 8 o'clock. By then I will have finished dinner. Don't call me between 7 and 8 pm. Then I'll have dinner.

The future perfect tense is not very actively and variedly represented in sentences in English speech, but it is quite simple to form and use.

To consider the question of how it is formed Future Perfect, we need to turn to the concept of the infinitive of the same name. The future tense is formed using the auxiliary verb will, and it is always followed by the indefinite form of the verb.

In our case, the grammatical verb construction will look like this:

Will + Have + Participle II, and everything to the right of the auxiliary verb is the Perfect Infinitive.

The infinitive is an unchangeable verb form, so we have no right to make any changes to it. Under no circumstances should you use the form has or insert any auxiliary words between have and Participle II.

For the Future Perfect, slightly different rules are used, so here you need to be a little more careful in some cases. Taking into account the above and the experience of studying Present Perfect and Past Perfect, several points can be deduced:

  • Pay attention to which verb is used to form Participle II. If it is not in the table of irregular verbs, then use the ending - ed (stayed, started). If it is in the table, then use the third form (run, taught, swum).
  • Perform all manipulations in interrogative or negative sentences only with the verb will - the rest of the construction must remain unchanged. See examples below.
  • Just as in the Past Perfect, a moment in the future is required before which the action we are describing will be performed. Often this is an event that occurs according to a schedule or agreement, but sometimes we have to become unwitting predictors.
  • Another very important indicator is that if a moment in the future is described by some reference event, then it is most often put in Present Simple time.

Now, in the Future Perfect tense, the rules and examples do not seem too complicated to us, and we can write several sentences in interrogative, affirmative and negative form.

Will you have written your poem by the time the poetry contest starts? Will you have written your poem by the time the poetry competition starts?

Nick will have seen that film the third time tomorrow evening. Tomorrow night Nick will see this movie for the third time.

My parents will not have come home until seven o’clock in the evening. My parents won't come home until seven o'clock in the evening.

In the Future Perfect you can also give examples of polite requests:

Mother, will you please have sent me some money by Tuesday? Mom, please send me some money by Tuesday.

Will you please have switched the heater on by 8 pm? Please turn on the heater by 8 pm.

Now solve in the Future Perfect example sentences:

  • They will have (stop) training on Saturday.
  • Mark will not have (come) when his mother (bring) a new shirt.
  • Will girls have (watch) the whole series by September?

For Future Perfect, the table is easy to fill out. You should carefully re-read the text, look through dictionaries and reference books. Fantasy will also play an important role - after all, you will have to predict various situations.

Many people think that Future Perfect(complete tense) belongs to the most difficult group of English tenses (Perfect), so it is not easy to master.

But this is not so, and now you will see everything for yourself.

This tense is used when you want to say that you will do something by a certain time in the future. For example: “I will lose weight by summer. She will have finished her report by Wednesday. We'll fix the car before dad comes."

As you can see, we say that in the future we will get a certain result in the future, so this is perfect - perfect tense.

Knowing this tense will significantly diversify your speech and make it richer.

In this article I will explain to you when to use the Future Perfect and how to correctly construct sentences in this tense.

From the article you will learn:

If you are not familiar with the times of the Perfect group, then I advise you to start with the following articles:

Rules for using the Future Perfect tense in English


When we use Future Perfect

1. We use the Future Perfect tense (future perfect/finished) when we say that we will finish something (get a result) by a certain point in time in the future.

For example: I will read this book by the weekend.

2. This tense can also be used to say that one action will end before another occurs.

For example: They will clean the apartment before their parents arrive.

As you can see, understanding the use of this time is very simple. Let's look at a clear example again.

For example, today you are thinking about writing a book, or maybe you have already started writing one. And you tell your friends that by the end of the year (a month, a week, etc.) you will write it. That is, you will have a finished result - a written book.

So that you do not confuse the Future Perfect tense with other future tenses, let's look at their differences.

Difference between Future Perfect, Future Simple and Future Continuous

All these 3 times are very easy to distinguish. Let's see how they differ.

Difference between Future Simple and Future Perfect

Future Simple is translated as "future simple".

We use it when we talk about an action that will happen in the future. Read more about this time.

Let's look at an example:

I will fly to New York.
I'll fly to New York.

In this sentence we are talking about action as fact that will happen in the future.

Now let's look at the sentence in the Future Perfect:

In this sentence you are saying that by a certain time in the future (Friday), the action will have ended and you will receive result- you will be in New York City.

Difference between Future Continuous and Future Perfect

Future Continuous is translated as "future continuous".

We use this tense when we want to emphasize duration of action. That is, the action will begin in the future and will last for some time. You can find out more about this time in this article.

Let's look at an example:

I will be flying to New York this time.
I will be flying to America at this time.

That is, we say that in the future we will board a plane and will be in the process of flying for some time.

Let's go back to our sentence in Future Perfect:

I will have flown to New York by Friday.
I'll be in New York by Friday.

You don’t care how long you will be in flight, that is, the duration/process of the action. Is important to you result- your landing and location in New York.

Tenses comparison table: Future Perfect, Future Simple and Future Continuous

Time Example What do we focus on?
Future Simple

I will clean my room.
I'll clean my room.

We talk about an action as a fact that will happen in the future.

Future Continuous

I will be cleaning my room for 2 hours.
I will clean my room for 2 hours.

We emphasize the duration of an action that will occur in the future. That is, the action will begin in the future and will continue for some time.

Future Perfect I will have cleaned my room by evening.
I will clean my room by evening.
We say that the action will end at a certain point in the future, and we will get the result.

Formation of the Future Perfect tense in English


Sentences in the completed future tense are formed using:

  • of the auxiliary verb have, which we putin the future tense, adding will to it. It turns out will have;
  • verb in the past tense.

Verbs in the past tense

We put verbs in the Future Perfect in the past tense. There are regular and irregular verbs in English. Depending on the verb, this form is formed as follows:

  • if the verb is correct, then we add the ending -ed to it: cook - cooked, finish - finished.
  • if the verb is irregular, then we put it in the 3rd form: do - done, eat - eaten

There is no rule by which we can determine the correct or irregular verb in front of us. You can only find out by looking it up in a dictionary or memorizing it.

The same is true with forms of irregular verbs. You need to memorize them or look them up in the dictionary.

Scheme for forming an affirmative sentence in the Future Perfect (future perfect tense):

Actor + will have + regular verb ending -ed or 3rd form of irregular verb

I
You
We read
They will have finished
She cooked
He
It

I will have cleaned our home by the time you come.
I'll clean our house by the time you come.

She will have passed her exams by the end of summer.
She will take her exams by the end of the summer.

Complex sentences in the Future Perfect

If you are talking about an action that will be completed before some other action occurs in the future, then:

  • in the first part we use the Future Perfect (future complete) - we are talking about an action that we will complete in the future
  • in the second part of the sentence we use the present tense ( Present Simple) - we are talking about an action that will happen after.

Wherein the verb (action) in the part where we use the Present Simple will be in the initial form.

For example:

I will have read this article before you return.
I'll read this article before you come back.

If in the second part the character is he she it, we add ending -s to our verb (action):

They will have cooked dinner by the time she come s.
They will have dinner ready by the time she arrives.

Abbreviations

We can shorten will in such a sentence

will = "ll

For example:

They "ll have built a house by the winter.
They will build a house for winter.

Words used in the future completed tense


Very often in the Future Perfect tense we use the following expressions:

by…- To…
by the end of…- by the end…
by the time...- by the time when…
by then- by that time
before- before
when- When

She will have finished it by the end of month.
She will finish it by the end of the month.

They will have built this house by then.
They will have built this house by then.

We will have fixed it by Monday.
We'll have it fixed by Monday.

Negative sentences in the Future Perfect in English

To say that you will not complete an action by a certain point, we use negation.

To form a negative sentence in the future completed tense, we add the negative particle not to the auxiliary verb will.

Scheme of a negative sentence in the Future Perfect:

Actor + will + not + have + regular verb ending -ed or 3rd form of irregular verb

I
You
We read
They will not have finished
She cooked
He
It

He will not have repaired a car by then.
He won't have fixed the car by then.

We will not have read an article by the time she calls.
We won't have read the article by the time she calls.

Reduction

We can shorten will and not like this:

will + not = won't

For example:

They won't have finished his work by evening.
He won't finish his work by evening.

Interrogative sentences in the Future Perfect in English

To ask whether something will be finished by a certain time, we put will first in the sentence.

Scheme of an interrogative sentence in the Future Perfect:

Will + actor + have + regular verb ending -ed or 3rd form of irregular verb

I
you
we read?
Will they have finished?
she cooked?
he
it

Will they have painted the walls before we return?
Will they paint the walls before we get back?

Will she have watched the movie by then?
Will they have seen the film by then?

Answers to the question in Future Perfect

The answer to the question can be positive or negative.

We can also give:

  • short answer
  • full answer

Short positive answer in the future perfect tense contains the word yes, the actor and the auxiliary verb will have:

Will will have.
Will they do it by Friday? Yes.

Short negative answer starts with no, and to will we add the particle not.

Will won't have.
Will they do it by Friday? No.

Complete positive answer looks like an affirmative sentence, only at the very beginning we put yes.

Will they have done it by Friday? Yes, they will have done it by Friday .
Will they do it by Friday? Yes, they will do it by Friday.

Complete negative answer looks like a negative sentence, only at the very beginning we put no.

Will they have done it by Friday? No, they won't have done it by Friday .
Will they do it by Friday? No, they won't do it by Friday.

So, we have analyzed the Future Perfect tense. Let's practice making sentences in this tense.

Reinforcement task

Translate the following sentences into English:

1. He will buy a new car by then.
2. She won't prepare dinner before we arrive.
3. Will they finish this project by the end of the year?
4. He will draw this picture by Friday.
5. We will not translate the article by 5 o'clock.
6. Will you be back by the time we leave?