LoginFuture Perfect Continuous
This is one of the most advanced tenses in the English language. So, congratulation on reaching this level. Let's start to learn this tense.
What Is Future Perfect Continuous Tense?
The future perfect continuous refers to ongoing actions that will be finished at some time in the future. We usually have a time expression in the sentence.
Future Perfect Continuous: Structure
The future perfect continuous is composed of the auxiliary verb 'will,' the auxiliary verb 'have' and the past participle of the verb 'be' (which is 'been') and the present participle of the main verb. Look at the table below to get to know them.
| Subject | All subjects |
|---|---|
| Auxiliary will | will |
| Auxiliary have | have |
| Past participle of be | been |
| Present participle of main verb | verb + -ing |
When we use the future perfect tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and auxiliary verb 'will.' Check out the examples below, for more clarification.
He
In three years, he
Future Perfect Continuous: Negation
To form negative sentences, put 'not' between the auxiliary verb 'will' and the auxiliary verb 'have.' For example:
In three years, he
Here, you can see the process of negation in action.
In negative sentences, we can contract the auxiliary verb 'will' and 'not.' See the examples:
In three years, he
Here, you can see the process of contraction in action.
Future Perfect Continuous: Questions
To form yes/no question sentences, simply put 'will' at the beginning of the sentence. Look at these example sentences with the future perfect continuous tense:
In three years, he
To form wh- question sentences, do the exact thing you do for yes/no questions and add the proper wh- question word at the beginning of the sentence, omitting the part that is the answer. Check out the examples:
She will have been studying
Tip!
If you want to learn more about spelling rules for adding -ing to the base form of verbs, see here.
Future Perfect Continuous Vs. Future Perfect
The future perfect continuous tense is like future perfect tense. Their difference is that the future perfect simple normally focuses on the result of the activity, and the future perfect continuous normally focuses on the process of the activity and it expresses longer actions.
Using Future Perfect Continuous to Talk about an Action That Will Continue up until a Point in the Future
Future Perfect Continuous: Use
When someone uses the future perfect continuous, they are talking about:
- Ongoing Actions That Will Continue up until Some Time in the Future
Ongoing Actions That Will Continue up until Some Time in the Future
We use the 'future perfect continuous tense' to talk about an ongoing action that continues up to another point in the future. We need 'for + length of time.' For example:
In three years, he
Here, we are talking about an ongoing action that continue up to the future.
I
When you come over, I
When I come at nine o'clock,
A set of events can lead to a result. The events that continuously happen before a future event have to be expressed by 'future perfect tense. For example:
She will be bored because she
Here, we are referring to an action being done in the future that leads to a certain result.
They
When Not to Use Future Perfect Continuous Tense
We do not normally use the continuous with stative verbs (also called non-continuous verbs). These verbs are normally used in the simple form because they refer to states, rather than actions or progress. Use the simple present perfect with verbs such as 'know, hate, hear, understand, want.' Here are the examples:
They will have been believing) her by the time.
In June, I will have been knowing") you for two months.
Review
It is obvious that the difference between future perfect tense and future perfect continuous tense is in the structure and meaning. Whenever the term 'continuous' is in a tense you can easily guess that the action takes place in a progressive state.
Structure, Contraction, Affirmative, Negative, and Question Forms
| structure | subject + will + have + been + v + -ing |
|---|---|
| affirmative |
Sam |
| negative |
Sam |
| contraction |
Sam wo |
| yes/no question |
|
| -wh question |
|
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