Simple Future Regular Verbs

Most Spanish tenses require you to remove the -ar, -er, or -ir ending before adding something new. Not this one. The Simple Future is additive. You take the entire infinitive (the base form of the verb) and just glue a new ending onto the end.

Imagine the infinitive is a train car. You are just hitching an extra trailer to the back. The best part? The endings are exactly the same for all three verb groups. Whether it is hablar, comer, or vivir, the endings never change. This is the one time in Spanish where verbs actually behave themselves. It is like a grammar peace treaty. You learn one set of endings, and you have conquered thousands of verbs in one go.

1. 1Ready to build some future sentences? Follow these three simple steps:
2. 2Pick your verb in its infinitive form (e.g., viajar).
3. 3Identify your subject (who is doing the action).
4. 4Add the corresponding ending to the end of the infinitive.
5. 5Here are the endings you need to memorize:
6. 6Yo: -é (e.g., hablaré - I will speak)
7. 7Tú: -ás (e.g., hablarás - You will speak)
8. 8Él/Ella/Usted: -á (e.g., hablará - He/She will speak)
9. 9Nosotros: -emos (e.g., hablaremos - We will speak)
10. 10Vosotros: -éis (e.g., hablaréis - You all will speak)
11. 11Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes: -án (e.g., hablarán - They will speak)
12. 12Notice something? Almost every ending has an accent mark. The only exception is nosotros. Think of nosotros as the humble member of the group who doesn't need a fancy hat. If you forget the accent, you might accidentally say a different word entirely, so keep those little marks sharp!

You will find yourself reaching for the Simple Future in several modern scenarios.

Predictions and Weather: This is what weather reporters use. Mañana lloverá (Tomorrow it will rain). It is great for general predictions about the world or your life.

Promises and Intentions: When you want to sound serious, use this tense. If you tell someone Te llamaré (I will call you), it sounds a bit more formal and committed than just saying you are going to do it.

Job Interviews: This is where you shine. When an interviewer asks where you see yourself in five years, you respond with Lideraré proyectos importantes (I will lead important projects). It shows confidence.

Probability in the Present: This is a cool Spanish trick. If someone asks "Where is Maria?" and you aren't sure, you might say Estará en su casa (She is probably at home). Even though it looks like the future, you are using it to express a guess about right now. It is like saying "I wonder..." or "I bet...".

Don't use the Simple Future for everything involving the future. Spanish is nuanced!

Near Future (The "Going To" Plan): If you are about to do something right now, or if you have a concrete plan, use ir + a + infinitive. For example, Voy a comer (I'm going to eat) is much more common for daily plans than Comeré. Use Comeré for a more distant or abstract "will".

Commands: While you can use the future for commands in a very strict sense (like the Ten Commandments), usually, you should stick to the Imperative. Don't tell your friend Limpiarás la mesa unless you want to sound like a medieval king.

Willingness: In English, we use "will" to ask if someone is willing to do something, like "Will you help me?". In Spanish, you don't use the Simple Future for this. Use the verb querer instead: ¿Quieres ayudarme?. If you use the future, you are asking for a prediction: "Will you (eventually) help me (at some point in time)?".

The "Chop-Off" Habit: You are so used to cutting off endings in the present tense. Many people try to say yo hablé for "I will speak." Oops! That is actually the past tense (Preterite). Remember: keep the full verb! Hablaré.

Forgetting Accents: Without the accent, hablará (he will speak) becomes... nothing recognizable. Or pasará (it will happen) becomes pasara. These accents change the stress of the word. They are non-negotiable.

Confusion with "Ir a": Don't overthink it. If it is a plan you just made, use ir a. If it is a prediction or a long-term promise, use the Simple Future. Think of it like a grammar traffic light: ir a is green (go do it now), Simple Future is yellow (looking ahead).

Let's compare the Simple Future with the "Near Future" (ir + a + infinitive).

Scenario: You are at a restaurant.

• Voy a pedir el pollo (I am going to order the chicken). This is your immediate plan. You are about to tell the waiter.
• Algún día, comeré en ese restaurante de lujo (One day, I will eat at that luxury restaurant). This is a dream or a distant prediction.

In English, we use "will" for both. In Spanish, the Simple Future feels a bit more "grand." It is the language of horoscopes, political speeches, and wedding vows. It carries a bit more weight. If you use it for mundane things like "I will brush my teeth," you might sound like you are making a dramatic announcement to the world.