We usually associate the word will with the future:
-
We will get all the results in August.
-
I will contact you next week for 1.___ details.
-
We won’t get another 2.___ to trade with them.
However, this is not the only way to talk about the future. Read the following dialogue:
| Martha | Are you going to Berlin next week? |
|——–|———————————–|
| James | Yes, I am. |
| Martha | When are you leaving? What time is your flight? |
| James | I don’t know yet. Is there an early morning flight on Monday? |
| Martha | Yes, there is. The earliest flight to Berlin leaves at 5.45. |
| James | Then I’ll take that one. I don’t know yet how long I am going to stay. Maybe I’ll have to spend the night. I’ll call you. |
| Martha | All right. You know that Mr Garland is visiting your branch today, at 13.00. |
| James | Oh yes, I completely forgot. If I don’t leave right away, I’m going to be late. See you later in the afternoon, Martha. |
| Martha | Oh, I won’t be here later in the afternoon. I’m having a business lunch with Tom Hutchinson from BIC, remember? |
| James | Right. Well, good luck then. I’ll see you tomorrow! |
When Martha asks James Are you going…?, she knows that he is supposed to go to Berlin next week. James is most 3._ going on a business trip for which arrangements have been made days in 4._. So he should know exactly when he is leaving. But he doesn’t know that. He will take the 5.45 flight because he has only just decided to do that, after Martha informed him that there is a flight at 5.45. The flight to Berlin leaves the airport 5._ to a schedule, always at the same precise time which you can check on the Internet or 6._ the phone. James doesn’t know whether he will have to spend the night in Berlin, maybe he won’t – he is 7._ about the future and promises that he will call Martha about it. Neither does he have any definite plans about how long he is going to stay there, that has not yet been arranged. But one thing is sure, he is having a meeting with Mr Garland today at 13.00 and he is going to be late as it is already 12.45! That Martha won’t be in the office later in the afternoon is a fact about the future as she is having a business lunch at an 8._ time.
Now let’s sum up:
| tense | example | function |
|——-|———|———-|
| Present Continuous | I am visiting our branch in Savska this afternoon. The President is having lunch with a prospective buyer tomorrow at 1.00. | arrangement; appointment; 9.___ plan for near future |
