Future Perfect
A comparison between the Future Perfect Simple and the Future Perfect Progressive
- We use the Future Perfect to provide a more comprehensive picture of a certain point in time in the future by relating to an action or state that will have been completed by that point in time. The Future Perfect connects the present and the future together.
- The Future Perfect Simple and the Future Perfect Progressive connect the present and the future in different ways. In the simple structure the emphasis is on dry information in terms of quantity and numbers while in the progressive structure we focus on the activity. Below you will find sentences of similar content but contrasting meanings. This will help you improve your understanding of the differences between the two structures.
Future Perfect Simple By the end of this course, I will have learned all the tenses. (future accomplishments - the emphasis is on the achievement itself and the result) |
Future Perfect Progressive By the end of this course, I will have been studying English for 6 months. (process with result in the future - the emphasis is on the activity) |
Future Perfect Simple By 2012, I will have been in New York for 15 years. (how long a situation will be true until a point in time in the future) |
Future Perfect Progressive By 2012, I will have been working for this company for 15 years. (an activity from the present until a point in time in the future) |
Future Perfect Simple By the end of next week, we will have been to Haifa and Tel Aviv, but we will not have visited Jerusalem yet. (task completion until a point in time in the future) |
Future Perfect Progressive By the end of next week, we will have been touring Israel for a month. (an activity from the present until a point in time in the future) |
Future Perfect Simple By 17:00, I will have prepared the food, called the guests, but I will not have made the cake. (task completion until a point in time in the future) |
Future Perfect Progressive By 17:00, I will have been working in the kitchen preparing food for 5 hours straight. (an activity from the present until a point in time in the future) |
Future Perfect Simple By December, the weather will have become colder. (completed changes until a point in time in the future) |
Future Perfect Progressive By December, the temperature will have been decreasing rapidly. (an activity from the present until a point in time in the future) |
Future Perfect Simple I assume that by the end of December, it will have rained at least 10 times and the Kinneret will be quite full. (how many times something will have happened until a point in time in the future) |
Future Perfect Progressive I assume that by the end of December, it will have been raining in Israel for at least two months. (process with result in the future - the emphasis is on the activity and how long it will be) |
- In Summary:
Future Perfect Simple
situations true from the present until a point in time in the future
a singular action that will have been completed by a point in time in the future and influence it.
how many times an action will have been performed until a certain point in time in the future
the emphasis is on the result of the action in the future
Future Perfect Progressive
actions originating from the present that will have been completed by a point in time in the future
multiple actions completed until a point in time in the future\a process
length of time of an action until a point in time in the future
the emphasis is on the activity and what’s going on around it
