The Spanish simple future for English speakers
Vocalyra teaching team · Last updated:
Spanish can express tomorrow with a future ending or with ir a plus an infinitive. Both often translate as will or going to, but the choice also communicates register and certainty.
Build the tense without removing the infinitive ending
Unlike the present tense, the simple future attaches endings to the complete infinitive. For hablar, write hablaré, hablarás, hablará, hablaremos, hablaréis and hablarán. The same six endings work for comer and vivir: comeré, viviremos. In most of Latin America, ustedes hablarán is the usual plural you form. The accent marks on é, ás, á and án are part of the spelling, not decoration. Practice one verb across all persons before memorizing many verbs.
Use the future for predictions and thoughtful promises
Mañana lloverá means It will rain tomorrow. Te llamaré después de la reunión is a promise: I will call you after the meeting. For a plan already arranged, Spanish often favors ir a plus infinitive: Voy a estudiar esta noche. English speakers sometimes translate every will mechanically into -ré; however, the immediate future in ordinary conversation is frequently expressed with voy a, vas a or vamos a. Neither structure is automatically more correct; the context decides.
Irregular stems and a surprising use
Some verbs change the stem but keep the regular future endings: tener becomes tendré, poder becomes podré, salir becomes saldré, hacer becomes haré and decir becomes diré. Do not say teneré or haceré. The future also expresses a guess about the present: ¿Dónde estará Ana? can mean Where could Ana be? or I wonder where Ana is. This is not a prediction about tomorrow. The clue is the present-time situation, such as a friend who is late right now.
A quick English-to-Spanish decision routine
Before translating, decide whether you are predicting, promising, describing a settled plan or guessing about the present. For a promise, escribiré often works well; for a plan, voy a escribir is common. Write a sentence about tomorrow, then another guessing where someone is now. Finally say them aloud, making the future stress clear: hablarÉ and saldrÁ. The spelling accents make the stress visible, unlike English will, which is a separate word.
- Mañana viajaré a Bogotá. = I will travel to Bogotá tomorrow.
- Esta noche voy a cocinar. = I am going to cook tonight.
- ¿Qué hora será? = I wonder what time it is.
- Nosotros tendremos tiempo. = We will have time.
Practice and self-check
Quick self-check
Complete: Mañana yo ___ (comer) temprano.
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comeré
Complete: Ellos ___ (salir) a las ocho.
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saldrán
Choose the ir a + infinitive construction for an arranged plan: Esta noche (voy a estudiar / estudiaré) con mi hermana.
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voy a estudiar
Translate a promise: I will call you tomorrow.
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Te llamaré mañana.
Explain: ¿Dónde estará Marta? when she is missing right now.
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A guess about Marta’s present location.