Other perfect tenses

Lessons (1i): The Future Perfect

Past perfect: "I had looked", "I had worked". A past event or action BEFORE a specified past time.

Present perfect: "I have looked", "I have worked". A past situation; it is not finished.

Future perfect: "I will have looked", "I will have worked". An action BEFORE a specified future time.

The present perfect is for actions or situations in the past which are still continuing in the present. For example “I have liked Coca-Cola since I was six” (and I still like Coca-Cola) or “I have been here since 8.30” (and I am still here). It is also for finished actions and situations, if they are within a period of time which is not finished. For example “I have drunk two cups of coffee today”. I am not drinking coffee now, but today is still continuing. Click here for more about the present perfect.

 

The Future Perfect

The future perfect takes us one step further forward in time. We use it to talk about actions or situations in the future - before a specified future time. As with the ordinary future tense, you can make it with “will” or with “going to”:

...will have + past participle

I will have been...
You will have walked...
He will have taken...
They will have put...

You will have improved your English fluency a lot by the end of this course."

 

...going to have + past participle

I'm going to have been...
You're going to have walked...
He's going to have taken...
They're going to have put...

You're going to have improved your English fluency a lot by the end of this course."
Note: This form is less common than “will have”, probably because it takes longer to write it or say it.

 

When do we talk about events that will happen before a specified future time? Not very often!

  • By this time next year, they’ll have finished the new road.” (They started building it last year)
  • By next January, I will have received my promotion.
  • Will she have learned enough English to get by before she moves to London?”
  • How many countries are you going to have visited by the time you finish university?
  • These are examples of the future perfect simple. There is also a future perfect continuous, but it is less common:
    By the end of this month I will have been working here for a whole year.”

     

    Future perfect, positive and negative:

    POSITIVE NEGATIVE
    “He will have finished his essay before the deadline on Thursday...” (He 'll start writing it this morning) “...but he won't have had time to start work on his presentation.”
    “By the time she gets home, he is going to have cleaned the entire house.” "He's not going to have had time to go to the supermarket, though".

     

    Future perfect, questions and answers:

    QUESTIONS ANSWERS
    “Are you going to have finished the test by 5.30?” "Yes, no problem."
    “How many tests will you have taken by the time you finish this course?” "I think I'll have taken four. No, five."

     

     

    Exercise: Use the Future Perfect

    Click here for the answers

    1. By the end of next year, I ______ ________ ___________ (to receive) my promotion.

    2. By the time she gets home, he ______ _______ __________ (to clean) the car.

    3. I ______ ______ _______ (to not finish) this test by 3 o’clock.

    4. Will she ______ ________ (to learn) enough Arabic to communicate before she moves to Riyadh?

    5. John and Sarah are probably ______ ______ _______ ________ (to complete) their project proposal by the time they leave this afternoon.

    6. By the time I finish this course, I ________ ________ ________ (to take) ten tests.

    7. How many countries _______ you _______ __________ (to visit) by your 50th birthday?

    Click here for the answers