Bonjour ! Welcome back to our course.
In the last two lessons, you learned how to form the futur simple for both regular and irregular verbs. Now you have two powerful tools for talking about the future: the futur proche (aller + infinitive) and the futur simple. Today's lesson will give you the essential vocabulary to specify when these future actions will happen.
Our learning goal is to use time expressions for future events (demain, la semaine prochaine, bientôt). Mastering these phrases is crucial for making plans, scheduling appointments, and discussing your goals—all key parts of the professional, academic, and social fluency you're aiming for.
1. Fundamental Future Time Words
Let's start with the most common words that place an action in the future. These are the building blocks for all future-oriented conversations.
The most essential words are:
- demain - tomorrow
- après-demain - the day after tomorrow
- bientôt - soon
- plus tard - later
To hear the pronunciation and see how to combine these with parts of the day, let's watch a short video.
French time expressions Part 2 (basic French vocabulary from Learn French With Alexa)
This video from 'Learn French With Alexa' clearly introduces 'demain' and 'après-demain', and shows how to combine them with parts of the day.
Watch from 00:17 to 02:50. Pay attention to the pronunciation of 'demain' (tomorrow) and 'après-demain' (the day after tomorrow), and how to form phrases like 'demain matin' (tomorrow morning).
As you saw, you can be more specific by adding:
- le matin - the morning
- l'après-midi - the afternoon
- le soir - the evening
For example:
- Je vais commencer un nouveau projet demain matin. (I am going to start a new project tomorrow morning.)
- Elle arrivera après-demain soir. (She will arrive the day after tomorrow evening.)
For more general future references, you can use bientôt (soon) and plus tard (later). The following article provides a handy list.
Phrases to express the future tense in French - BBC Bitesize
This BBC Bitesize article has a clear table of common time adverbs. It's a quick and effective way to see these words in writing.
Scroll down to the section 'Using the present tense and time adverbs to express the future'. Focus on the table that lists time adverbs. Note 'bientôt' and 'plus tard'.
Examples:
- Nous parlerons bientôt. (We will speak soon.)
- Je t'appellerai plus tard. (I will call you later.)
2. Talking About "Next" Week, Month, or Year
To talk about longer-term plans, you'll need the word prochain (next). An important grammar point here is that, as an adjective, it must agree in gender with the noun it describes.
- le mois (month) is masculine -> le mois prochain
- le week-end (weekend) is masculine -> le week-end prochain
- la semaine (week) is feminine -> la semaine prochaine
- l'année (year) is feminine -> l'année prochaine
Notice that in French, prochain(e) comes after the noun.
Let's watch another short video to reinforce this and see it used in sentences.
French time expressions Part 1 (basic French vocabulary from Learn French With Alexa)
This clip, also from 'Learn French With Alexa', demonstrates how to use 'prochain' and 'prochaine' and explains the adjective agreement.
Watch from 01:21 to 02:45. Listen for the phrases 'la semaine prochaine', 'le mois prochain', and 'l'année prochaine'. Notice how the ending of 'prochain' changes.
You can also use prochain with days of the week, like mardi prochain (next Tuesday).
Here is a helpful image that visually connects time expressions with the correct tense. Look for the examples that use future expressions.
3. Using Time Expressions in Sentences
You can place these time expressions at the beginning or end of a sentence. Placing them at the beginning often adds a little emphasis.
- L'année prochaine, je chercherai un nouvel emploi. (Next year, I will look for a new job.)
- Je chercherai un nouvel emploi l'année prochaine. (I will look for a new job next year.)
As you saw in the BBC Bitesize article, it's also common in spoken French to use the present tense with a future time marker for definite, near-future plans.
- Je travaille ce soir. (I am working this evening.)
- Demain, je prends le train pour Paris. (Tomorrow, I'm taking the train to Paris.)
The futur simple, which you've been practicing, is also frequently used with these expressions, often for more distant plans or to sound more formal. This is confirmed in the resource below.
Les temps futurs / The Future Tenses in French
This short text from Espace PROFFLE reinforces the connection between the 'futur simple' and the time expressions we've just learned.
Read the paragraph under the heading 'II. Le futur simple'. It explicitly states that this tense is often used with expressions like 'demain', 'bientôt', or 'l’année prochaine'. You can glance at the English version below it to confirm your understanding.
Test your understanding!
Translate the following sentences into French using the time expression and an appropriate future tense (futur proche or futur simple).
- I will have a meeting tomorrow afternoon.
- We are going to visit our friends next weekend.
- She will finish her studies next year.
- Call me later!
Show answer
- J'aurai une réunion demain après-midi. (using futur simple) OR Je vais avoir une réunion demain après-midi. (using futur proche)
- Nous allons visiter nos amis le week-end prochain.
- Elle finira ses études l'année prochaine.
- Appelle-moi plus tard ! (using the imperative)
Conclusion
Great job! You can now confidently use a range of essential time expressions to talk about your future plans in French.
Key Takeaways:
- Core future words include demain, après-demain, bientôt, and plus tard.
- To specify "next," use prochain (for masculine nouns like mois) or prochaine (for feminine nouns like semaine), placed after the noun.
- Future time expressions can be used with the futur proche, the futur simple, and even the present tense for scheduled events.
Next Lesson Preview:
You may be wondering when to use the futur proche versus the futur simple. While they are sometimes interchangeable, they carry different nuances. In our next lesson, we will distinguish between and use both futur proche and futur simple to discuss plans, giving you more precision and control over your expression.
À la prochaine ! (Until next time!)