Form of the
'going to'-future
The going
to-future is formed with am/is/are going to + the base form of the verb.
I am >You
are >
He is >
She is >
It is > going to arrive tomorrow.
We are >
You are >
They are >
Uses of the
'going to'-future
1. The 'going
to'-future for prediction
The going
to-future is often used, like will, to predict the future. It is
common in speech, especially when we are referring to the immediate
future. The speaker sees signs of something that is about to happen:
This use of
going to includes the present, whereas It will rain is purely about
the future. Alternatively, the speaker may have prior knowledge of
something which will happen in the near future:
A future time
reference may be added with such predictions:
We usually
prefer will to the going to-future in formal writing and
when there is a need for constant reference to the future as in, for
example, weather forecasts.
2. The 'going
to'-future for intentions, plans, etc.
When there is
any suggestion of intentions and plans, we tend to use the going
to-future rather than will in informal style:
However, we
generally prefer will to going to when we decide to do
something at the moment of speaking:
Intention can
be emphasized with adverbs like now and just which are
generally associated with present time:
The use of 'be
going to' to refer to the remote future is less common and generally
requires a time reference:
If we want to
be precise about intentions and plans, we use verbs like intend to,
plan to, propose to, rather than going to:
3. The 'going
to'-future in place of the Present Progressive
The going
to-future may be used where we would equally expect to have the Present
Progressive with a future reference:
However, we
cannot use the Present Progressive to make predictions, so it would not be
possible in a sentence like this:
Though 'be
going to' can combine with go and come, the Present
Progressive is preferred with these verbs for reasons of style. We tend to
avoid going next to go or come (e.g. going to
go/going to come):
4. The
'going to'-future after 'if'
We do not
normally use will after if to make predictions, but we can
use 'be going to' to express an intention:
'Be going
to' can often be
used in the main clause as well:
|