Collins Cobuild

Unit 65
Present tenses for future
Main points
When  you  are  talking  about  the  future  in  relation  to  official
timetables or the calendar, you use the present simple (‘I walk’).
When talking about people’s plans and arrangements for the future,
you use the present continuous (‘I am walking’).
In ‘if’-clauses, time clauses, and defining relative clauses, you can
use the present simple (‘I walk’) to refer to the future.
1
When you are talking about something in the future which is based on
an official timetable or calendar, you use the present simple tense. You
usually put a time adverbial in these sentences.
My last train leaves Euston at 11.30 on Tuesday morning.
The UN General Assembly opens in New York this month.
Our next lesson is on Thursday.
We set off early tomorrow morning.
2
In statements about fixed dates, you normally use the present simple.
Tomorrow is Tuesday.
It’s my birthday next month.
Monday is the seventeenth of July.

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3
When you want to talk about people’s plans or arrangements for the
future, you use the present continuous tense.
I’m meeting Bill next week.
They’re getting married in June.
We’re going to Barbados at the beginning of September.
4
You often talk about the future using the present tense of verbs such as
‘hope’,  ‘expect’,  ‘intend’,  and  ‘want’  with  a  ‘to’-infinitive  clause,
especially when you want to indicate your uncertainty about what will
actually happen.
We hope to see you soon.
Bill expects to be back at work tomorrow morning.
They intend to press ahead with plans to scrap the current system.
After the verb ‘hope’, you often use the present simple to refer to the
future.
I hope you enjoy your holiday.
5
In subordinate clauses, the relationships between tense and time are
different. In ‘if’-clauses and time clauses, you normally use the present
simple for future reference.
If he comes, I’ll let you know.
Please start when you are ready.
We won’t start the meeting until everyone arrives.
Don’t forget to lock the door after you finally leave.
6
In defining relative clauses, you normally use the present simple, not
‘will’, to refer to the future.
Any decision that you make will need her approval.
Give my love to any friends you meet at the party.
There is a silver cup for the runner who finishes first.

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7
 If  you  want  to  show  that  a  condition  has  to  be  the  case  before  an
action  can  be  carried  out,  you  use  the  present  perfect  for  future
events.
We won’t start until everyone has arrived.
I’ll let you know when I have arranged everything.

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