I think you’d all agree with me when I say: learning the future tense in Spanish can be REALLY tough.
And let’s face it, extremely dry grammar content fluffed up with fancy jargon does NOT help you understand how to use it.
I can almost hear the Royal Spanish Grammar Family scoffing form here, lording over their illusive intel and plotting how to take their secrets to the grave.
Well, my friends, today YOU’RE in luck, because I’ve been spying on the Lordship and I have some exclusive insider info that will dramatically improve the way you learn the future tense in Spanish.
I spend all my time decoding the puzzles so that YOU don’t have to!
Today, we will be uncovering everything you need to know about the Simple Future tense, along with some powerful advice that will help you remember WHEN it’s applicable as well as give you a…
BONUS TIP: when it can be swapped out for something easier!
How to Express the Future in Spanish
What is the “Future” to you?
Here’s the deal- you may have noticed that I didn’t write future “tense”, and that’s because before we jump into robotic conjugations, it behooves us English speakers to think about how WE use the future tense in Spanish. You’d be shocked to know how many people learn languages without ever analyzing their own!
When we think of time, we generally see three planes: PAST, PRESENT, and FUTURE. And when we stumble upon a Spanish grammar book for the first time and see 32 tenses, we naturally have an existential crisis and want to pull our hair out.
But there’s an EASIER way…
LISTEN TO ME. It’s as easy as 1,2, 3.
For us, the future is either one of THREE things:
- “I am going to do my homework tomorrow” (indicating a prior plan)
- “I’ll do my homework tomorrow” (rapid decision)
- “I WILL do my homework tomorrow!!!” (a promise- with cogones!!!)
All subtle differences, which can be imagined through the following scenarios:
- Your concerned roommates ask… “You’re going out AGAIN? Don’t you have homework!?” to which you respond that you have a PRIOR PLAN, and that you are going to do your homework with your study group tomorrow!
- Your concerned roommates see you binge watching Netflix again, and you shoo away their concern with a RAPID DECISION that you’ll just do your homework tomorrow.
- Your concerned roommates see you struggling to juggle all of your commitments and you consider dropping out and moving to the Amazon, but instead you get your life together and proclaim your PROMISE that you WILL finish your homework tomorrow!
The perception of future differs from culture to culture. Ancient Amerindians believed the future was behind us (because we couldn’t see it) and the past was in front of us. And if you’ve ever heard a German speaking English, you would notice that they do not occupy #1, and exclusively speak in #3- “I will do this… I will go there” (now those are people are efficient!!!).
THE BEST PART is that our Latino and Spanish brethren are procrastinators like us, and we use the future in almost exactly the same way. So the key takeaway is to ALWAYS think in English first which form of the future you would use.
Three Ways to Express the Future in Spanish
- Voy a hacer mis tareas mañana.I am going to do my homework tomorrow.
- Hago mis tareas mañana.I’ll do my homework tomorrow.
- Haré mis tareas mañana.I will do my homework tomorrow.
Again, all subtle differences, but they break down in these three ways:
| Future Expression | Type |
| Verb “ir” conjugated + a + infinitive verb | Informal |
| Present Indicative tense | Informal |
| Simple Future tense | Formal |
Let’s attack 1 and 2, our informal buddies, before we take on 3.
The first way is by the far the most used way to express future. It is almost an exact translation of “I am going to do”, or “I’m gonna do”.
NOW, LISTEN UP HERE FOR THE NATIVE SECRET. The second way is the easiest way to express future. It’s the golden ticket!
In English, we slop together the subject “I” with “Will” to make “I’ll”, ultimately to save time.
In Spanish, we save time by just using the PRESENT instead of the FUTURE tense (you don’t even have to conjugate the future, how sweet is that?!) and it sounds way more colloquial and smooth.
Some more examples of expressing future in the present tense are:
- Nos vemos mañana. See you tomorrow. (Literally: We see each other tomorrow)
- No te preocupes, yo lo hago! Don’t worry, I’ll do it!
- Yo lo contesto! I’ll get it! (The phone)
SIMILARLY, if the future event is CERTAIN, many times the present tense will do just fine:
- Mi hermana se casa en julio. My sister is getting married in July.
- Mañana me graduo de la universidad. Tomorrow I am going to graduate from university.
I CANNOT EMPHASIZE ENOUGH how important it is to master #1 and #2. You must learn first how to conjugate the verb “ir” (yo voy, tú vas, él va…). Once you have this down, you just need to remember the infinitive verb (hacer, comer, beber…) and BAM!
You have the future that is most commonly spoken around the world, without ever having to conjugate the Simple Future tense! Look at all this time we are saving!
Additionally, with the powerful TIME SAVER above, if you know how to conjugate the Present, you have already mastered two of the three ways to express future! Felicidades!
Now To the Future… And Beyond!
Easiest Way to Conjugate the Simple Future Tense in Spanish
The Simple Future tense (#3) is used much less than the aforementioned two future forms, but nonetheless we WILL learn it together! (Grammar pun).
It is formed by taking the WHOLE infinitive verb (TO SPEAK = HABLAR) and just smacking the appropriate ending on it! Fácil!
| Subject | Ending |
| yo | -é |
| tú | -ás |
| usted, él, ella | -á |
| nosotros | -emos |
| vosotros | -éis |
| ustedes, ellos, ellas | -án |
HISTORY BUFFS: In the old days of Shakespearian Spanish, people would say the infinitive verb followed by the conjugated verb HABER. For example, “Hablar he”, which literally means “Speak, I must” and sounds a whole lot like modern-day “Hablaré!”
Let’s practice with regular verbs before moving to the gnarly irregular verbs:
| Subject | Hablar | Comer | Recibir |
| yo | hablaré | comeré | recibiré |
| tú | hablarás | comerás | recibirás |
| usted, él, ella | hablará | comerá | recibirá |
| nosotros | hablaremos | comeremos | recibiremos |
| vosotros | hablaréis | comeréis | recibiréis |
| ustedes, ellos, ellas | hablarán | comerán | recibirán |
Pesky Irregular Verbs that Crash the Party but Come in Handy!
LOOK – Everyone who has every learned a foreign language in the history of the world has bullied irregular verbs for being different. They are like the mysterious, misunderstood kid who wallows in the corner and is difficult to communicate with.
But once you get him to open up, you have more compassion for him and all of humanity as a result!
We shouldn’t FEAR irregular verbs or make fun of them. Once we master them, the world gets a bit brighter. When we know better, we DO better.
What are the Irregular Verbs in Future Tense Spanish
Often, the most common everyday verbs are irregular, including TO BE (ser/estar), TO DO (hacer), TO SAY (decir) – you know, trivial things! But statistically speaking, the numbers are as follows:
- VERBS ENDING IN –AR: Less than 5% are irregular.
- VERBS ENDING IN –ER: Upwards of 72% are irregular.
- VERBS ENDING IN –AER: 100% irregular (but there are only 18).
- VERBS ENDING IN –IR: Upwards of 33% are irregular.
There are three categories of verbs that play hard to get and DO NOT FOLLOW the regular Future Tense Conjugation pattern in Spanish:
- Verbs that drop e from the infinitive (haber, caber, poder, querer, saber…)
- Verbs that drop the e or i from the infinitive and add d (poner, salir, tener, venir…)
- Verbs that do whatever they want because they are divas (hacer, decir…)
Let’s go over each one!
1. How to Speak in Future Tense When Verbs Drop E from the Infinitive
The model doesn’t stray far from the regular verb format. Just add the same endings, but drop the e from the infinitive (HABER -> HABR) + ENDING!
WE’RE IN LUCK! These verbs are some of the most commonly used, so you’ll remember these easily!
| Subject | Haber | Poder | Saber |
| yo | habré | podré | sabré |
| tú | habrás | podrás | sabrás |
| usted, él, ella | habrá | podrá | sabrá |
| nosotros | habremos | podremos | sabremos |
| vosotros | habréis | podréis | sabréis |
| ustedes, ellos, ellas | habrán | podrán | sabrán |
2. How to Speak in Future Tense When Verbs Drop E or I and add D
Easy peasy- drop the i e and add the d (PONER PONDR) + ENDING!
| Subject | Poner | Salir | Tener |
| yo | pondré | saldré | tendré |
| tú | pondrás | saldrás | tendrás |
| usted, él, ella | pondrá | saldrá | tendrá |
| nosotros | pondremos | saldremos | tendremos |
| vosotros | pondréis | saldréis | tendréis |
| ustedes, ellos, ellas | pondrán | saldrán | tendrán |
3. How to Deal with Diva Verbs that Demand Their Own Way
These verbs are far and few between (gracias a Dios!) and thus we just need to appreciate them in their uniqueness and memorize their patterns.
| Subject | Hacer | Decir |
| yo | haré | diré |
| tú | harás | dirás |
| usted, él, ella | hará | dirá |
| nosotros | haremos | diremos |
| vosotros | haréis | diréis |
| ustedes, ellos, ellas | harán | dirán |
So… When Exactly do I use #3 (Simple Future), and Why Does it Matter?
We English speakers know that we use “I am going to…” (and the less tasteful “I’m gonna…”) way more than we use “I will”. But the reality is there are some uses in Spanish that we DO NOT have in English, where it only makes sense to use the Simple Future tense.
Conjectures (fancy word for guesses), Possibilites, and Probabilites
- ¿Dónde estará mi bolso? Where (in the world) is my purse?
- ¿Cuántos años tendrá Maluma? I wonder how old Maluma is?
- ¿Será? You think? (Literally, it will be?)
- Serán las siete de la noche. It must be seven at night.
Is that… God speaking?
Historically, God gave solemn commands in the future tense.
- No tomarás el nombre de Dios en vano! You shall not take the Lord’s name in vein!
- No matarás. You shall not kill.
However, the same goes today for parents disciplining children.
- No te moverás de este lugar!* You will NOT move from this place!
- No tendrás tu celular por una semana entera! You will not have your cellphone for a whole week!
*NOTE: The command “No te moverás” differs from the command “No te muevas” in that, generally speaking, the future tense is used when it is more disciplinary and for periods of time that extend longer into the future.
For example, when your mom tells you to stay on a bench while she peruses the whole store “No te moverás de este banco hasta que regrese!”. On the contrary, “No te muevas” would be more for the period of time it takes to snap a picture. “Stay still, don’t move!”
Romance is in the Air
Oh, the romance! We often use the Future in English to indicate when we will ALWAYS be there for someone, physically or emotionally, but the same goes for commitments, jobs or sports teams. Hint: It is almost always accompanied by the world always (siempre).
- Siempre estaré a tu lado. I will always be by your side.
- Siempre te amaré. I will always love you. (sounds better in song)
- Siempre haré lo justo. I will always do what’s right.
- En buenas y malas, siempre apoyaré a mi equipo. Through the good and bad, I will always support my team. (Hala Madrid!)
Future Tense Spanish Practice
The best way to learn the future tense in Spanish is with LOTS of practice. Clozemaster is great for this as it allows you to practice conjugating the future tense in context. It offers thousands of future tense Spanish sentences to test your understanding. Try it out with the sentences from this article below!
BOTTOM LINE, People of the Future
Yes, okay, we have learned how to conjugate the regular and irregular verbs of the future, but MOST IMPORTANTLY now we know that the future in Spanish is so much more than just the Simple Future tense! The future tense in Spanish can also be the verb ir + a + infinitive (aka informal future) and sometimes just the Present tense (aka easy peasy).Easy as 1,2,3!
Moreover, we’ve seen that the future can be used for possibilities, solemn commands and juicy declarations of love. Qué lindo!
Thank you for taking a journey through time and space with us to understand the future of the Spanish language! We hope this page was useful and may always be used as a reference. Hasta el próximo, amigos!
Click here to read our comprehensive guide to all Spanish tenses!
FAQs
What is the future tense in Spanish examples? ›
In Spanish you have to change the verb endings. So, just as hablo means I speak, hablaré means I will speak or I shall speak. To form the future tense of regular -ar, -er and -ir verbs, add the following endings to the infinitive of the verb: -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án.
What is the future tense used for in Spanish? ›The Spanish future tense can be used to make predictions, form hypotheses in the present, discuss unclear plans and make conditional statements. Despite generally being an easy tense to form, there are a few common errors that English natives often make when using this tense.
What are the 2 future tenses in Spanish? ›In Spanish, there are three different future tenses, which include the simple future tense, the ir a + infinitive mode and the future perfect tense.
What are 10 examples future tense? ›- She'll write the e-mail after lunch.
- Don't lift that. You'll hurt yourself.
- You dropped your purse. ...
- I'll see you tomorrow.
- You'll get the answer by post.
- Dan's going to take the order over to the customer.
- The girls are going to sing 'Amazing Grace' now.
- I'll drive you to your lesson at 4 pm.
- Simple future tense.
- Future continuous tense.
- Future perfect tense.
- Future perfect continuous tense.
- Simple Future Tense – used to denote an action that will happen in the future.
- Future Continuous Tense – used to indicate an action that will be taking place in the future.
- Future Perfect Tense – used to represent an action that starts in the present and will happen in the future.
Subject + will have been + V1 + the verb's present participle (verb root + -ing). Example: He'll have run for an hour on the treadmill the next day.
What are the 5 tenses in Spanish? ›- Present (presente)
- Imperfect (pretérito imperfecto)
- Preterite (pretérito indefinido)
- Future (futuro simple or futuro imperfecto)
- Simple conditional (condicional simple or pospretérito)
- Present perfect (pretérito perfecto)
future tense. noun. : a verb tense formed in English with will or shall and expressing an action or state in time yet to come.
What is the perfect future tense in Spanish? ›In Spanish, we call the future perfect el futuro perfecto or antefuturo. Both these names reveal its meaning and use. Antefuturo translates to “before the future” because future perfect Spanish talks about an action that will happen before a certain point in the future.
What are the 3 types of present tense verbs in Spanish? ›
Present tense -AR verbs
In Spanish, verbs are divided into three categories for all tenses: -ar verbs, -er verbs, and -ir verbs. The -ar, -er, and -ir refer to the unconjugated infinitive ending of the verb. Examples of each are hablar (to speak), comer (to eat), and vivir (to live).
- Simple Future (I will visit my grandparents)
- Ir a + Infinitive Verb (I'm going to visit my grandparents)
- Future Perfect (I will have visited my grandparents)
- I will meet him later (I'll ..)
- You will come (you'll..)
- It will rain tomorrow (it'll)
- She will be late (she'll..)
- He will help us later (he'll..)
- We will get married in September (we'll)
- They will cook dinner (they'll..)
The formula for the simple future is will + [root form of verb]. I will learn a new language. Jen will read that book. My brothers will sleep till noon if no one wakes them up.
What is future give example? ›In grammar, the future tense is the verb form you use to talk about things that haven't happened yet. When you say, "The party will be so fun!" "will be" is in the future tense. Whenever you write or talk about things that you expect to happen later, you use the future tense.
What is future tense formula? ›Subject + helping verb(will) + base form of the verb+ rest of the sentence. The formation of the simple future tense can be analyzed with reference to positive, negative, interrogative, and negative interrogative types of sentences.
How many forms are there in future tense? ›Today we're going to look at four future tenses: the future simple, the future continuous, the future perfect and the future perfect continuous.
What does simple future tense means and give 3 examples? ›The simple future tense is used to refer to actions or states that begin and end in the future. These events have not happened yet, but will happen sometime in the future: I will meet her at the mall. The monkeys will eat any bananas that their handlers give them.
How do you study future tense? ›Using the simple future
There are two ways to use the simple future tense: you can use either “will” or “be going to”. Let's look at some examples to see them in action: “I will send you some information later today.” “I am going to travel more after I finish studying.”
- Simple present. Something that is unchanging, general, scheduled or happening at certain intervals. ...
- Present continuous. Something that is happening now or in the near future. ...
- Simple past. Something that happened before now. ...
- Past continuous. ...
- Simple future. ...
- Future continuous.
How do you answer future tense questions? ›
...
Question Word + will + subject + be...?
- When will he be here?
- When will it be fun?
- Where will the beach be empty?
- What will be in the package?
- What will be his nickname?
The simple tenses (past, present, and future) are the most basic forms, but there are 12 major verb tenses in English in all.
What are the 17 Spanish tenses? ›- Indicative mood: Simple tenses. Present. Imperfect past. Simple past. Future.
- Indicative mood: Perfect tenses. Present perfect. Past perfect. Future perfect.
- Indicative mood: Progressive tenses. Present progressive. Past progressive.
- Present tense- Presente. ...
- Imperfect tense- Copretérito / pretérito imperfecto. ...
- Preterite tense- Pretérito / pretérito perfecto simple. ...
- Future tense- Futuro / Futuro simple. ...
- Conditional tense- Pospretérito / condicional simple. ...
- Present perfect- Pretérito perfecto compuesto o antepresente.
- We use the present simple for something scheduled:
- We can use the present continuous for plans or arrangements:
- We use will be with an -ing form for something happening before and after a specific time in the future:
- We use modals may, might and could when we are not sure about the future:
...
Look at these examples:
- Hold on. I'll get a pen.
- We will see what we can do to help you.
- Maybe we'll stay in and watch television tonight.
We make the present tense by using the verb root word or the verb "to be", am and an "ing" word, walking. Present Tense; I am walking to school. Future Tense; I will go tomorrow. We make the future tense by using the verb "to be" and the verb root word.
What is future action example? ›“I'm going to take some time off work this year.” “They are going to adopt a child.” “He's going to quit his job and become an artist.” Going to can also be used for a future action when there are signs or evidence that it is likely going to happen.
Will future Example sentences? ›Examples of Will:
I will go to the cinema tonight. He will play tennis tomorrow. She will be happy with her exam results. They will take the bus to the South next week.
There are two ways to use the simple future tense: you can use either “will” or “be going to”. Let's look at some examples to see them in action: “I will send you some information later today.” “I am going to travel more after I finish studying.”
How do you write future tense? ›
To write or speak in simple future tense, you will usually simply add the helping verbs 'will' or 'shall. ' Another way to write simple future tense is by using a form of 'be' plus 'going to.
What is simple future tense answer? ›The simple future tense is used to refer to actions or states that begin and end in the future. These events have not happened yet, but will happen sometime in the future: I will meet her at the mall. The monkeys will eat any bananas that their handlers give them.
What is future tense short answer? ›It's made up of the words 'will+be+the present participle (the root verb + -ing).' The following Tense is used: Subject + will be/shall be + the present participle (the root verb + -ing) Example: I'll be sleeping till around 6 a.m. tomorrow.
What is a future tense word? ›What is a future tense verb? Future tense verbs, as their name suggests, tell us that an action or state will happen in the future. We can use future tense verbs to both refer to events that we know will happen and events that we think will happen.
What is the example of future perfect tense? ›The future perfect tense refers to an action or state that will finish sometime in the future before some other event in the future. The following sentence uses the future perfect tense: I will have cleaned my room before my parents come home.
What is go in future tense? ›I will go, we will go. You shall go. He, she, it, they shall go.