Understanding Going-to-Future tense: Formation, usage and example sentences
The English tense Going-to-future is not as difficult to understand as you might think at first sight. We'll show you how to express in English something that will happen in the future and is planned. Learn English going-to-future tense with us. We show you in detailed explanations how to form the going-to future tense and when to use it.
The formation of the going-to-future tense
The going-to-future tense follows a special rule that you must master in order to form the going-to-future tense correctly. It is very easy to understand and you just have to apply it like a formula. Check out the rule for going-to-future tense here:
Subject + form of the verb "to be" + going to + full verb.
Fortunately, there are no exceptions or irregularities in the formation of the going-to future tense. You just need to learn the rule for forming the going-to future tense and use them to form some sentences yourself, and you'll understand how to form English sentences in the going-to future tense. Also, take a look at the following example sentences in going-to-future tense to better understand how to form this future tense. The bold areas in the example sentences will help you to recognise the going-to-future tense rule in the English sentences.
Example sentences for the formation of going-to-future tense
| I am going to watch a movie tonight. |
| They are going to cook dinner together. |
| She is going to meet her friends at the park. |
| We are going to study for our exam tomorrow. |
| He is going to play soccer with his team this weekend. |
| You are going to read a book before bed. |
| The company is going to launch a new product next month. |
| They are going to travel to Europe next summer. |
| She is going to buy a new car soon. |
| We are going to learn how to play the guitar. |
The use of going-to-future tense
Going-to-future tense is used whenever you want to talk in English about something that will happen in the future. Normally, you use going-to-future tense to express plans or intentions in the future. These plans and intentions have already been made in the present and are already firmly planned. The going-to-future tense, in contrast to the will-future, is therefore always used when actions, plans or intentions have already been made and are already planned and thought out.
Always use the going-to-future tense for:
- Plans for the future
- Intentions for the future
- Forecasts based on information in the present
- Predictable events
- Announcements that will take place in the future
For a better understanding of going-to-future tense, feel free to look at the following example sentences. These have been deliberately formulated to show the use of going-to-future tense in a particularly clear way.
Explanation of going-to-future tense using example sentences
| Example sentence | Use |
|---|---|
| I will travel to Japan next year | Future plan |
| We will move into a bigger flat this year | Future plan |
| He will study harder to get better grades | Future plan |
| From now on I will eat healthier | Future plan |
| The clouds are getting darker. It looks like it's going to rain. | Forecast |
| The car is going too fast. If it doesn't slow down, it will cause an accident. | Prediction |
| The train leaves in five minutes. We will be late if we don't hurry. | Predictable events |
| Next weekend we will have a party for her birthday. | Prediction |
| Mike and Clara will need more time for this project. | Announcement |
Signal words for going-to-future tense
To help you recognise when to use the going-to future tense, you should also look at some signal words for the going-to future. These signal words will help you use the very useful English future tense. Please note that some of the signal words also require you to use the will-future tense.
Below you will find a list of signal words for going-to-future tense with illustrative example sentences.
| Signal word | Example |
|---|---|
| Intend | I intend to study abroad next year. |
| Plan | We are planning to visit our grandparents this summer. |
| Tomorrow | I will clean my room later. |
| Next week/month/year | She will start her new job next week. |
| Later | He will finish his homework tonight. |