Talking about the Future

Grammar

French uses two primary tenses to talk about future events: the Futur Proche (Near Future) and the Futur Simple (Simple Future). Knowing which one to use depends mainly on the distance of the action in time, the certainty of the action, and the context (spoken vs. written).

Le Futur Proche

The futur proche is used to express an action that is imminent or for a fixed plan in the near future where the speaker feels a high degree of certainty or intention. It is the most common way to talk about the future in spoken French. The futur proche emphasizes immediacy or a decision already made, and speakers often use it to describe personal intentions, scheduled short-term plans, or actions that are about to begin.

Formation

The Futur Proche is a compound tense formed with the present tense conjugation of the verb aller (to go) followed by the infinitive of the main verb.

{Subject} + {Present Tense of Aller} + {Infinitive of the Main Verb}

Here is an example of of how to use the futur proche with the verb faire.

Subject Pronoun	Futur Proche	English
Je	vais faire	I am going to do
Tu	vas faire	You are going to do
Il/Elle/On	va faire	He/She/One is going to do
Nous	allons faire	We are going to do
Vous	allez faire	You are going to do
Ils/Elles	vont faire	They are going to do

Usage

• Imminent Actions: Something about to happen. (e.g., Attention, le verre va tomber! - Watch out, the glass is going to fall!)
• Near-Term Plans/Intentions: A confirmed plan. (e.g., Je vais dîner avec mes parents ce soir. - I am going to have dinner with my parents tonight.)

Examples

Here are some examples of how the futur proche is used.

Qu'est-ce que tu vas faire ce week-end ?	What are you going to do this weekend?
Je vais réserver les billets ce soir.	I am going to reserve the tickets tonight.
Tu vas partir ce week-end ?	Are you going to leave this weekend?
Nous allons manger à 19h.	We are going to eat at 7 PM.
Il va neiger cet après-midi.	It is going to snow this afternoon.
Je ne vais pas étudier ce soir.	I am not going to study tonight.
Nous allons organiser une randonnée ce week-end.	We are going to organize a hike this weekend.
Il ne va pas rester plus de deux nuits.	He is not going to stay more than two nights.
Ils vont louer une voiture à l’arrivée.	They are going to rent a car on arrival.
Allez-vous confirmer la disponibilité demain matin ?	Will you confirm availability tomorrow morning?
Est-ce que vous allez réserver l’hôtel maintenant ?	Are you going to book the hotel now?

Le Futur Simple (The Simple Future)

The Futur Simple is used for actions that are expected to happen in the more distant future, for predictions, hypotheses, or promises. It is generally preferred in formal contexts and in written French.

Formation

The following table shows the conjugation for the futur simple for each class of verb. Note that the grammatical endings are the same for each class and are added to the infinitive. For infinitives that end in re the final e is dropped.

Subject Pronoun	Ending	-ER (Parler)	-IR (Finir)	-RE (Vendre)
Je	-ai	parlerai	finirai	vendrai
Tu	-as	parleras	finiras	vendras
Il/Elle/On	-a	parlera	finira	vendra
Nous	-ons	parlerons	finirons	vendrons
Vous	-ez	parlerez	finirez	vendrez
Ils/Elles	-ont	parleront	finiront	vendront

Irregular Stems (Common Verbs)

Some verbs are irregular in the futur simple.For these verbs, the endings are regular, but the stem changes. The following table shows how these verbs are conjugated for the first person (je).

Infinitive	Stem	Example	Translation
Être (to be)	ser-	Je serai	I will be
Avoir (to have)	aur-	J'aurai	I will have
Aller (to go)	ir-	J'irai	I will go
Faire (to do/make)	fer-	Je ferai	I will do
Pouvoir (to be able to)	pourr-	Je pourrai	I will be able to
Savoir (to know)	saur-	Je saurai	I will know

Key Usage

• Distant Future: Actions far off in time. (e.g., Dans cinq ans, j'habiterai à la campagne. - In five years, I will live in the countryside.)
• Predictions/Promises: Statements about what will happen. (e.g., Tu réussiras si tu travailles. - You will succeed if you work.)
• Time Clauses: Used after quand (when), lorsque (when), or dès que (as soon as) when the main clause is also in the future. (e.g., Dès qu'elle arrivera, nous commencerons. - As soon as she arrives, we will start.)

Examples

J’irai à Paris l’année prochaine.	I will go to Paris next year.
Nous finirons le projet en juin.	We will finish the project in June.
Elle réussira son examen.	She will pass her exam.
Demain, je prendrai le train de 10 heures.	Tomorrow, I will take the 10 o'clock train.
Un jour, nous visiterons tous les musées de la ville.	One day, we will visit all the museums in the city.
Le festival aura lieu en juillet.	The festival will take place in July.
Si tu veux, je t’appellerai plus tard pour confirmer.	If you want, I'll call you later to confirm.