Extras
Future continuous: ‘We’ll be sending you…’
The future continuous (will be doing) isn’t essential – other tenses can almost always do the same job. But in business you will hear it often, especially for future plans, so it is important to recognise it.
This page is part of the Extras: tenses you will need far less than the ones in the main guide.
From How to Use English Verb Tenses in Business by David Cox · 200+ diagrams for professional English
Future continuous for an arranged activity
We can use the future continuous to talk about an arranged activity – a fixed future plan:
We’ll be visiting your factory on Thursday morning.
Future continuous to talk about a fixed future plan
However, we can just use the present continuous here, as we saw in Lesson 2.2:
We’re visiting your factory on Thursday morning.
Present continuous to talk about a fixed future plan
You will hear this a lot in business. Using the future continuous for future plans is actually very common – in meetings, on calls and especially in emails. It sounds polite and professional, because it presents the plan as something that is simply going to happen: We’ll be sending you the contract by Friday. I’ll be meeting the new client in Madrid next week. We’ll be holding the annual general meeting in May.
Mixing tenses to describe a timetable of events
If you are hosting a conference or an event and going through the timetable, the future continuous helps you avoid repeating the same future tense again and again:
We have a lot of great speakers today. Firstly, Amy Smith will be talking about current market trends.
Future continuous to talk about a planned continuing activity as part of a series of events
Then at around 10am, Dave Evans is going to tell us a bit about his experience of running a company.
‘Going to’ to talk about a future intention
Our final speaker of the morning, Julia Ripley, will be giving her predictions for future market trends,
Future continuous to talk about a planned continuing activity as part of a series of events
and we’ll probably stop for lunch at around 12:30.
‘Will’ to give a future prediction
An activity already in progress at a future time – and a simpler option
We also use the future continuous for an activity which will already be in progress at a particular time:
Please don’t call me at 10, because I’ll be sitting in a meeting.
Future continuous to talk about an activity which will already be in progress at a particular time
An alternative – better and much easier – is simply to name the event that you will be at: ‘I’m in a meeting’:
Please don’t call me at 10, because I’m in a meeting.
Present simple to talk about an official plan or event
Teachers: use these diagrams
You are welcome to use these diagrams in your lessons and materials. Please credit Fluency Space with a link to this page.
Diagram: Fluency Space – fluencyspace.com/grammar/verb-tenses/future-continuous/Correct on paper is not the same as natural in the boardroom
One-to-one Business English coaching for C1/C2 executives and founders.
© Copyright Fluency Space. All Rights Reserved
OptimizePress Popup Overlay
the fluency space acadademy
Be one of the first 50 to join and get a huge discount!
Your advanced English training center. Over 600 pages of PDFs. over 250 diagrams and hundreds of exercises. 32 Vocabulary lessons covering the 400 most important phrases for advanced Business, 2x monthly Adapted Business English texts, 2x monthly YouTube listening lessons, 'How to Use English Verb Tenses in Business' textbook.
All of this and much more for only $5.99 per month. Cancel anytime!
