¿Qué tanta diferencia hay entre ellos? Te enseñaremos a cómo utilizarlos en tu día a día correctamente para hablar del futuro en inglés. ¡Tranquilo/a, no es difícil!
Un ejemplo en español para comprender rápidamente de lo que trata es:
-¿Qué haces hoy? O ¿Qué vas a hacer hoy? No hay mucha diferencia, pero es una decisión personal al hablarlo.
Definiciones
Pte Continuous: se utiliza para acontecimientos que están ocurriendo en o entorno a este momento particular en el tiempo, o para indicar que algo es temporal, o para hablar de situaciones que van cambiando, y también para hablar sobre planes en el futuro.
Be going to: es una estructura que puedes usar para hablar de tus planes y decisiones a futuro.
Conjugaciones
Pte Continuous:
| CONJUGACIÓN | INGLÉS | ESPAÑOL |
|---|---|---|
| 1ª per. Singular | I am working | Yo estoy trabajando |
| 2ª per. Singular | You are working | Tú estás trabajando |
| 3ª per. Singular | He is working / She is working / It is working | Él está trabajando / ella está trabajando / (para objetos) |
| 1ª per. Plural | We are working | Nosotros/as estamos trabajando |
| 2ª per. Plural | You are working | Ustedes están trabajando |
| 3ª per. plural | They are working | Ellos están trabajando |
El sufijo «ing» se añade al verbo principal sin modificar este, salvo cuando el verbo termine en -e; en este caso, se suprime esta vocal.
EJ:
Work > > working
Prepare > > Preparing
Be going to:
| CONJUGACIÓN | INGLÉS | ESPAÑOL |
|---|---|---|
| 1ª per. Singular | I am going to have a sándwich | Yo estoy trabajando |
| 2ª per. Singular | You are going to have a sandwich | Tú estás trabajando |
| 3ª per. Singular | He is going to have a sandwich/ She is going to have a sandwich / It is going to have a sandwich | Él está trabajando / ella está trabajando / (para objetos) |
| 1ª per. Plural | We are going to have a sandwich | Nosotros/as estamos trabajando |
| 2ª per. Plural | You are going to have a sandwich | Ustedes están trabajando |
| 3ª per. plural | They are going to have a sandwich | Ellos están trabajando |
Transcripción Podcast «Planes Futuros en inglés»
Hi, Welcome to another Podcast from the English series from the Mastery in English Program at Manpower. I’m Robert Leaverton and I hope you’re having a great day!
Visit us at educacioncontinua.cftmanpower.cl for more information on taking a demonstration tutorial or to find out more about our different English program that are available.
Future plans
In addition to the simple future tense, we can talk about future events by using either:
the present continuous, or
to be (in the simple present) + going to +verb.
How’s your future looking? Have you made some plans or arrangements? Are you confused at how to get your idea across to the other person > Well, let’s talk about using present continuous and the verb ‘to be’ going to, to express your plans and or arrangements.
Remember the best way to learn new verb forms is to practice. Translations will help you understand the individual words, but the ideas are best not translated in the same way as your language has them.
First, «What is the present continuous?» This is using the verb ‘to be’ in the form that is used for each subject. In the present form the verb ‘to be’ has three forms, am for the first person, I. Is, is used for the third person, He, She, or it. Are is used for the second person You, the singular form, as well for the plural forms for We, You, and They. The verb ‘to be’ is in the present tense and the continuous form is the action verb in the ‘ing form’. For example. To Read, would be’ I am reading’ in the continuous form.
The verb «to be’ going to uses the same present tense of the verb to be, for each subject, and going to added after. The example is ‘I am going to read.’
Future plan
Both going to and present continuous are used to talk about future actions, events, and arrangements that have some present reality. So, for example, if we say that something is happening or going to happen, it is usually already decided or planned. We use other forms of the future tense to express other decisions for the future.
Examples:
We are going to study English next week.
We are studying English next week.
As you can see, both sentences express nearly the same idea. Both present continuous and be going to can be used to express the same idea. In some cases, there is a difference of meaning.
The present continuous tense is common with verbs of movement (Actions verbs).
I am just leaving for the café. (Remember in English Café is a small restaurant, not Coffee).
Are you coming to the party?
These two forms are used to talk about future plans. There are, however, some differences between the two forms.
1. The present continuous for future plans:
The present continuous is used when we say what we have planned and arranged to do at a specific time in the future. These are fixed plans with definite time and/or place.
Examples:
I’m doing my homework this evening.
I’m starting university in September.
Sally is meeting John at seven o’clock this evening in a restaurant downtown.
Notice that a time expression or word is generally used, at a future time, to help clarify that this is not happening right now.
This is different from the other use of present continuous where we can talk about actions happening at this moment.
Example:
It’s raining.
We are eating lunch in the park right now.
2. To be + going to + verb:
A. We use ‘going to’ to express the future when we intend to do something or have decided to do something but did not arrange it, it’s not fixed or set in place (another word for this is to arrange something. That mean you have planned all the parts and they are ready to go. It is just an intention.
Example:
A: The windows are dirty.
B: Yes, I know. I’m going to clean them later.
This means: I’ve decided to clean them ,but I haven’t arranged to clean them.
We also use ‘going to’ to make predictions.
Watch out! you are going to break the glass.
It’s so cloudy! I think it’s going to rain.
I hope this helped clear up any doubts about the use of present continuous or to be + going to when expressing future plans.
As a bonus in this podcast, I’m going to look at some English idioms we use to talk about the future, including idioms for making predictions and describing how time passes. Remember you don’t need to use these; however, you’ll sound more natural and native, but understanding them will make listening to a native speaker easier for you.
Idioms to talk about the future
If you say that something is a sign of things to come, it means that it is an indication of what the future will be like, or a sample of something that will happen in the future:
«All these floods we’ve been having are just a sign of things to come.»
If something is going to happen any minute now, it is due to happen imminently, although the exact time is unknown. We can also say any second/hour/day now, depending on the timeframe:
«The train should arrive any minute now.»
«Jessica is due to give birth any day now.»
To burn your bridges means to act in a way that irreversibly damages a relationship with a person or organization:
«You’ll be burning your bridges if you send that email to the CEO; the company will never consider hiring you again or giving you a good reference.»
If your days are numbered it means you don’t have long left to live:
«When the doctor said my grandfather’s days were numbered, I went to visit him immediately.»
For the time being means for the moment or at this time. We use this to talk about a situation that will stay the same for a while, but may change in the future:
«We’d like to live by the sea one day but we’re going to stay in the city for the time being.»
We say that someone’s future looks bright if we think they have a promising future ahead of them:
«Her future looks bright after she got such good grades.»
If you get ahead of yourself, you act or plan for something prematurely, without planning properly or following the correct steps:
Lisa: «I’d better go shopping for some new clothes for this job.»
Annie: «I think you’re getting a bit ahead of yourself; you haven’t even had an interview yet!»
When you have time on your side or when time is on your side, you have more than enough time to do what is required:
Our kids had too much time on their hands last summer break, so we decided to enroll them in a few different summer camps to keep them occupied.
«The client has asked for a detailed sales analysis but fortunately time is on our side as they don’t need it until next month.»
In the near future means some time soon. It is not as imminent as any minute now but will happen quite soon. We might also say before too long:
«I hope to see our profit margin increase in the near future.»
Something that is just around the corner is just about to happen:
«Follow these simple rules and success will be just around the corner.»
When you do something enthusiastically or energetically as if it’s your last chance to do it, we say you’re doing it like there’s no tomorrow:
«Sally has been baking cakes like there’s no tomorrow. I wonder what the occasion is?»
If you have no time to lose, you are very short on time and must take action immediately:
«We have no time to lose if we want to arrive at the theatre before the show starts.»
Only time will tell is said when the only way to discover the answer or truth about something is to wait for time to pass. You will find out some time in the future:
«Only time will tell whether we made the right decision.»
The idiom save for a rainy day means to save money for some unknown or unexpected event in the future:
«I make an effort to save for a rainy day by putting aside a little each month.»
When you take a rain check, you ask or agree to do something at a later (usually unspecified) time:
«Thanks for the invitation to lunch, but I’ll have to take a rain check.»
To/until the end of time is another way of saying forever, often used poetically:
«He told her he would love her to the end of time.»
Tomorrow’s another day is something said to encourage someone by reminding them that there will be other opportunities in the future:
«I know the meeting didn’t go as you’d hoped but don’t worry; tomorrow’s another day.»
That’s all for this podcast. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to listen.
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