Future Continuous Tense Rules, Uses with Examples

Future Continuous Tense: Future Continuous tense is also called Future Progressive Tense. This type of verb tense indicates/denotes action happening or continuing for future times. This tense is the future version of the present continuous tense. The structure of this tense is: Subject + will be/shall be + V1 + ing + Object. Scroll down to know more about Future Continuous tense.

Definition of Future Continuous Tense

The future continuous tense refers to a verb tense that denotes that something will happen in the future and continue for an expected period of time. It is also known as the future progressive tense. The future continuous refers to an unfinished action or event that will be in progress at a time later than now. The future continuous is used for quite a few different purposes.

Structure of Future Continuous Tense

Structure of Present Continuous Tense
Type	General formula & Rule	Example
Future Continuous Tense	Subject + will be/shall be + V1 + ing + Object	I will have been waiting here for three hours by six o’clock.

Example of Future Continuous Tense

An example of future continuous tense is-

• It shall be raining from tomorrow. (it rains from tomorrow May have been।)
• I shall be watching the series today. (it rains from tomorrow May have been।)
• They shall be staying at my place. (they in my place will remain।)
• The doctor shall be coming tomorrow. (doctor come tomorrow must have been। )

Structure of Sentences of Future Continuous Tense

Future Continuous Tense sentences can be in three forms, that is, Positive or Affirmative, and Negative, Interrogative sentences. Below is the structure of all three forms and examples to make you understand better.

Structure of Sentences in Future Continuous Tense

Positive/Affirmative Sentence

Subject + Will/Shall be + Verb(1st form) + ing + Object

Example of Positive/Affirmative Sentence–

• I will be playing tennis at 10 am tomorrow. (I am playing tennis tomorrow at 10 am.) Will stay.)
• I shall be helping him to do the task. (I help him in this work.) Will do.)
• I shall be arranging all the necessary materials for the program. (I arranged all the necessary materials for the program.) Will do.)

Structure of Sentences in Future Continuous Tense

Negative Sentence

Subject + Will/Shall not be + Verb(1st form) + ing + Object

Example of Negative Sentence–

• I will not be playing tennis at 10 am tomorrow. I am not playing tennis tomorrow at 10 am Will stay.
• I will not be helping him to do the task. (I will not help him in this work.) Will do.)
• We shall not be going to enjoy the musical drama. (I am not going to enjoy the musical drama.) Must have been.)
• I will not be arranging all the necessary materials for the program. (I did not arrange all the necessary materials for the program.) will do।

Structure of Sentences in Future Continuous Tense

Interrogative Sentence

Will + Subject + be + Verb(1st form) + ing + Object

Example of Interrogative Sentence–

• Will I be playing tennis at 10 am tomorrow? (What I play tennis tomorrow at 10 am will play?)
• Will I be helping him to do the task? (What I will help him in doing this work will do?)
• Will we be going to enjoy the musical drama? (What we go to enjoy the musical drama Are you?)

Look at these example sentences in the future Continuous Tense:

	Subject	Auxiliary Verb		Auxiliary Verb	Main Verb	Object
Positive form	I	Will		be	working	at 10 am
Positive form	You	Will		be	lying	on a beach tomorrow.
Negative form	She	Will	not	be	using	the car.
Negative form	We	Will	not	be	having	dinner at home.
Interrogative form	Will	you		be	playing	football?
Interrogative form	Will	they		be	watching	TV?

Contraction with Future Continuous Tense

Generally, when we use the Future Continuous Tense in Speaking, we often contract the Subject and Auxiliary Verb. Below are examples of the same-

I Will	I’ll
You Will	You’ll
he will she will it will	he’ll she’ll it’ll
we will	we’ll
they will	they’ll

Uses of Future Continuous Tense

Some of the uses of future continuous tense are-

1. To indicate an action that will be going on in the future.
2. To describe interrupted actions in the future.
3. To express actions in progress at a specific time in the future.
4. To refer to actions that are happening now and expected to continue some time in the future.
5. To ask a question politely about the future.
6. To express parallel actions or series of parallel actions in the future.

Example of Uses of Future Continuous Tense

Some of the examples of uses of future continuous tense are-

1. To indicate an action that will be going on in the future.

For example-

• He‘ll be coming to visit us next week. (He will visit us next week.)
• She will be joining a coaching center for tuition. (She will join a coaching center for tuition.)
• They will be playing football on that field. (They will be playing football on that field.)
• April will be having coffee in this coffee shop. (April will be drinking coffee in this coffee shop.)
• Bob will be going to the library. (Bob will be going to the library.)

2. To describe interrupted actions in the future.

For example-

• When you come tomorrow, they will be playing tennis. (When you come tomorrow, they will be playing tennis.)
• I’ll be waiting here when you arrive. (I’ll be waiting here when you come.)
• We will be staying at an Airbnb, so contact the owner of the property if anything happens. (We will be staying at an Airbnb, so please contact the property owner if anything happens.)

3. To express actions in progress at a specific time in the future.

For example-

• At 12 o’clock tomorrow, we will be having lunch at school. (We will have lunch in school tomorrow at 12 noon.)
• At Noon, I will be eating lunch with my daughter. (At noon, I will have lunch with my daughter.)
• Around 6, we’ll be watching a movie with our kids.(At about 6 o’clock, we will be watching a movie with our kids.)

4. To refer to actions that are happening now and expected to continue sometime in the future.

For example-

• Unfortunately, sea levels will still be rising in 20 years. (Unfortunately, sea levels will still be rising in 20 years.)
• I will be studying for some time. You carry on. (I will study for some time. You continue.)
• My mother will be praying for the next two hours. (I will study for some time. You continue.)

5. To ask a question politely about the future.

For example-

• Will you be bringing your friend to the party tonight? (Will you bring your friend to the party tonight?)

6. To express parallel actions or series of parallel actions in the future.

For example-

• In the Future.
• Next week.
• Next time.
• Next year.
• At this moment next year.
• At this time tomorrow.

Exercise1:

Translate Future Continuous Tense sentences from English to Hindi-
Exercise	Answers
I will be studying tomorrow.	I will be studying tomorrow.
We shall not be watching a movie today.	We won’t be watching a movie today.
The ship will be sailing in the sea at this time tomorrow.	The ship will set sail at this time tomorrow.
I will be playing tennis at 10 am tomorrow.	I will be playing tennis tomorrow at 10 am.
I will be writing articles on different topics.	I will write articles on various topics.
They won’t be watching TV at 9 pm tonight.	They will not be watching TV at 9 o’clock tonight.
What will you be doing at 10 pm tonight?	What will you be doing tonight at 10 o’clock?
They will be travelling by aeroplane.	They will travel by plane.

Exercise2:

Translate Future Continuous Tense sentences from Hindi to English-
Exercise	Answers
He may be learning a new skill.	He will be learning a new skill.
April will be drinking coffee in this coffee shop.	April will be having coffee in this coffee shop.
Penny will be running in the marathon tomorrow.	Penny will be running in the marathon tomorrow.
She will not be sleeping when you call her.	She will not be sleeping when you telephone her.
We will be eating dinner when the movie starts.	We’ll be having dinner when the film starts.
Raunak will be going to the library.	Ronak will be going to the library.
take your umbrella. It will be raining when you return.	Take your umbrella. It will be raining when you return.
We will watch a movie in this cineplex next Wednesday.	we will be watching a movie in this cineplex on next Wednesday.