What is the “futur proche” and when do you have to use it in French?

So, you’re learning French and you’re getting pretty good at conjugating verbs in the present tense. But what about the future tense, and especially, the futur proche?

If you intend to take the DELF A2, you must master the near future. But don’t worry, we’ll look at it in detail. You can also read our article on the most common questions asked during a French oral exam.

Don’t worry, it’s not as hard as it seems. In fact, there are only a few things you need to know in order to form French future verbs. I’m going to show you how it’s done in this post, so keep reading!

Simple future… near future… Present with future value… Futur antérieur!

Why? Why ? OK, we’ll keep the futur proche (near future) and we’ll watch this a little bit closer. 

Conjugation of the French Futur Proche

First of all, the conjugation. How do you conjugate the futur proche? How do you form the conjugation of the futur proche?

This is very easy. We take the verb aller (to go) in the present tense, plus the infinitive of the verb you want to conjugate.

aller + infinitif

And we conjugated the near future!

A little reminder: you still need to know the conjugation of the verb aller!

Je vais, tu vas, il va… OK, so far, so good, nous allons, in general, students are fine.

Vous allez.

OK, and for ils/elles (they) ?
Sometimes you get surprises, even with very good students.

Ils vont, ils vont!

And so for the futur proche. The verb aller + the verb in the infinitive, the verb that you want to conjugate, in fact, we’ll leave it in the infinitive and we made the futur proche!

Nous allons nous coucher (We’re going to bed).

Obviously… Here we have the verb se coucher (to lie down), reflexive verb that complicates the conjugation a little bit more, but not much:

1. Because we have the subject: nous (we),
2. The verb aller (to go) in the form Nous (we): nous allons (we go).
3. And then the pronoun of the pronominal verb (of the reflexive verb).
   As it is the form nous, well the pronoun is nous and the infinitive: se coucher.
4. Nous allons nous coucher (We are going to bed) and this structure with pronominal verbs, reflexive verbs:

Subject + verb aller in the present tense + the pronoun + the infinitive
It’s all the time the same.

So, no need to… NO! It’s the same one. Always the same structure.

I know… in French, you are often told: “yes, but there is…” .
Here, when you conjugate in the futur proche it is always this same structure.

• For a simple verb: subject + aller in the present tense + infinitive.
  • Example: Elles vont manger.
• For a pronominal verb: Subject + aller in the present tense + the pronoun that fits the subject (Caution!) + the infinitive.
  → Je vais me coucher (I’m going to bed).
  → Nous allons nous coucher (We are going to bed).

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The use of the Futur Proche in French

When is the future proche used in French? Because we saw at the very beginning:

1. Futur simple, 
2. futur proche, 
3. futur antérieur, 
4. présent à valeur de futur.

4 futures ?!

Why the futur proche ? What for?

1. French futur proche: when you speak

First thing: you have to know that it is a time which is generally used in oral, when you speak.
It is rather a time that is informal. Then it is used to express an action that is close.

2. French futur proche: when the action is close to happening

Second thing: Look at the name: Futur proche! Near future! An action that is close… Clever, that!

They are smart these French people ! 😆

For an action which is in a few moments, in a few minutes, in a few hours, maybe even in a few days. But it’s close to now, it will happen : Futur proche ! Very quickly. 

An example:

• J’ai soif, je vais boire. (I am thirsty, I’m going to drink.)

You saw that the action, it was very close. Je vais boire (I’m going to drink). Futur proche !

3. French futur proche: to express something that you want to happen

Third thing: When you want to express a project, something you want to do.

Examples: 

1. Nous allons nous marier. (we’re getting married)
   This is our project…
   
2. Elle va venir en vacances à Nice. (She is going to come on vacation to Nice)
   What a great project!

To sum up about the near future

So, to summarize:

The futur proche is conjugated with the verb aller (to go) in the present tense, the “classic” present tense that you all know + the infinitive of the verb that you want to conjugate.

The verb “to eat” in the “futur proche”: Je vais manger.

The second thing is a time that is used a lot in the spoken word.

Third thing, it is used to express an action in the future, but a future that is here, now, very, very close.

Fourth, it expresses a project, something you want to do in the future.

And that’s all for today! If you’re interested in learning more, or want to get started right away, check out our French program. We’ve spent years teaching adults and children the language of love (and hopefully some lessons on how to use it properly).

So go ahead – make your future bright by picking up a few words in the futur proche de la langue française today. Bonne chance !

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See you soon 🙂

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