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Future Perfect Continuous
We use this tense to express actions that will be happening at a definite moment in the future.
Use
- Actions that will be in progress at a definite moment in the future.
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| By tomorrow I will have been saving money for a new house for 4 years. |
Common time expressions used in the Future Perfect Continuous :
- By tomorrow / 8 o'clock
- This year / month / week
- Next year / month / week
Form
Contracted forms (more)
WILL = 'LL
Example: She'll have been = she will have been
WILL + NOT = WON'T
Example: She won't have been = she will not have been
Example: "She will have been dancing" means "she is going to have been dancing"
Declarative sentences:
| Subject | + | Auxiliary verb | + | Auxiliary verb | + | Auxiliary verb | + | Present participle |
| I/a dog etc. | will | have | been | going, doing (verb + ing) |
- We will have been driving 6 hours by the time we get home.
- In the summer Mike will have been trying to find a new job for five months.
- Jane will be very tired when she comes home, because she will have been flying over 24 hours.
- My father and I will have been breeding sheep for 20 years tomorrow.
- By the year 2020, linguists will have been studying and defining the Indo-European language family for more than 200 years.
Note: If duration of an activity (since April, for three hours) is unknown then the Future Continuous should be used instead of the perfect form.
Negative sentences:
| Subject | + | Auxiliary verb | + | Auxiliary verb | + | Auxiliary verb | + | Present participle |
| I/a dog etc. | won't | have | been | going, doing (verb + ing) |
- She won't have been writing the book for four months by the end of October.
Negative sentences seem to sound somewhat unnatural. Probably because the answer to a question like, "Will she have been teaching for 30 years this year?", would simply be, "No, I don't think so".
Questions:
| Auxiliary verb | + | Subject | + | Auxiliary verb | + | Auxiliary verb | + | Present participle | ? |
| Will | I/a dog etc. | have | been | going, doing (verb + ing) |
- Will he have been writing the composition for a month by the end of February?
Questions beginning with "how long" are more common:
- How long will you have been learning German this year?
- How long will you have been trying to get your driving license this week? I hope you'll finally make it!