Future Perfect Tense: Definition, Rules, and Examples

Future Perfect Tense: In English grammar, the future perfect tense is used to describe an action that will be completed by a specific point in the future. The standard structure is Subject + will have/shall have + Past Participle (V3) + Object. To help you master this tense, we have broken down the rules and usage in detail below.

Future Perfect Tense

 According to the Cambridge Dictionary, the future perfect tense is defined as “the form of the verb that is used to show that an action will have been completed by a particular time.” 

According to the Collins Dictionary, the future perfect tense is defined as a “tense of verbs describing an action that will have been performed by a certain time.” 

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the future perfect tense as a form “relating to, or constituting a verb tense that is traditionally formed in English with will have or shall have, and that expresses the completion of an action by a specified time that is yet to come.” 

According to the Britannica Dictionary, the future perfect tense is “a verb tense that is used to refer to an action that will be finished by a specified time in the future.”

Structure of Future Perfect Tense

Structure of Future Perfect Tense
Type	General Formula & Rule
Future Perfect Tense	Subject + Helping verbs (will + have) + Past participle form of the main verb + the rest of the sentence.

Example of Future Perfect Tense

A common example of the future perfect tense is: "I will have finished my project by tomorrow."

• I will have dressed up by the time you reach home. (जब तक तुम घर पहुंचोगे, तब तक मैं कपड़े पहन चुका होऊंगा।)
• You will have dressed up by the time they reach home. (जब तक वे घर पहुंचेंगे तब तक आप तैयार हो चुके होंगे।)
• He will have dressed up by the time you reach home. (जब तक आप घर पहुंचेंगे तब तक वह तैयार हो चुका होगा।)
• She will have dressed up by the time you reach home. (जब तक आप घर पहुंचेंगे तब तक वह तैयार हो चुकी होगी।)
• They will have dressed up by the time you reach home. She will be taking her dog for a walk. (जब तक आप घर पहुंचेंगे तब तक वे तैयार हो चुके होंगे। वह अपने कुत्ते को टहलने ले जाएगी।)

Structure of Sentences of Future Perfect Tense

Sentences in the future perfect tense can be structured in three forms: affirmative (positive), negative, and interrogative. Below, we break down the structure of each form with easy-to-follow examples.

Structure of Sentences in Future Perfect Tense

Affirmative/Positive form

Subject + will + have + Verb(3 form) + Object

 Example of an Affirmative Sentence:

• You will have left for London by the time by the time she is back. (जब तक वह वापस आएगी तब तक आप लंदन के लिए निकल चुके होंगे।)
• Calvin will have gone by the time you reach there by bus. (जब तक तुम बस से वहाँ पहुँचोगे तब तक केल्विन जा चुका होगा।)
• I will have walked 15km by that time. (मैं उस समय तक 15km चल चुका होगा।)
• The plant will have grown by then. (तब तक पौधा बड़ा हो चुका होगा।)

Structure of Sentences in Future Perfect Tense

Negative form

Subject + will not+ have + Verb(3rd form) + Object

Example of a Negative Sentence:

• Henry will not have run by ten o'clock. (हेनरी दस बजे तक नहीं दौड़ चुका होगा।)
• You will not have left for London by the time she is back. (जब तक वह वापस आएगी तब तक आप लंदन नहीं जा चुके होंगे।)
• Calvin will not have gone by the time you reach there by bus. (जब तक तुम बस से वहाँ पहुँचोगे तब तक केल्विन नहीं जा चूका होगा।)

Structure of Sentences in Future Perfect Tense

Interrogative form

Will + Subject + have + Verb(3rd form) + Object?

 Examples of an Interrogative Sentence:

• Will you have left for London by the time she is back? (क्या उसके वापस आने तक आप लंदन जा चुके होंगे?)
• Will Calvin have gone by the time you reach there by bus? (जब तक तुम बस से वहाँ पहुँचोगे तब तक क्या केल्विन जा चुका होगा?)
• Will I have walked 15km by that time? ( क्या मैं उस समय तक 15 किमी चल चुका होगा?)

Consider these additional example sentences to understand the future perfect tense in context:

	Subject	Auxiliary Verb		Auxiliary Verb	Main Verb	Object
Positive form	I	will		have	finished	at 10 am.
Positive form	You	will		have	forgotten	met by them.
Negative form	She	will	not	have	gone	to school.
Negative form	We	will	not	have	left.
Interrogative form	Will	you		have	arrived?
Interrogative form	Will	they		have	received	it?

Example of “ To arrive” in Future Perfect Tense

Affirmative/Positive form	Negative form	Interrogative form
I will have arrived.	I won't have arrived.	Will I have arrived?
You will have arrived.	You won't have arrived.	Will you have arrived?
He will have arrived.	He won't have arrived.	Will he have arrived?
We will have arrived.	We won't have arrived.	Will we have arrived?
They will have arrived.	They won't have arrived.	Will they have arrived?

Contraction With Future Perfect Tense

In spoken English, we often use contractions to join the subject and the auxiliary verb. Here are common examples of how these contractions appear:

I will have	I'll have	I'll've
You will have	You'll have	You'll've
He will have She will have It will have	He'll have She'll have It'll have	He'll've She'll've It'll've
We will have	We'll have	We'll've
They will have	They'll have	they'll've

Uses of Future Perfect Tense

Common uses of the future perfect tense include:

1. The Future Perfect Tense is used to talk about actions that will be completed by a certain future time.

Example of Use of Future Perfect Tense

Below are more examples of how to use the future perfect tense:

1. The Future Perfect Tense is used to describe actions that will reach completion by a specified time in the future.

• I will have finished my book by then.(मैं तब तक अपनी पुस्तक समाप्त कर चुका होऊंगा।।)
• He will have left before you go to see him. (इससे पहले कि तुम उसे देखने जाओ वह निकल चुका होगा।)
• By the end of this month, I will have worked here for five years. (इस महीने के अंत तक, मैं यहां पांच साल तक काम कर चुका होऊंगा।)

Exercise1:

Translate Future Perfect Tense sentences from English to Hindi-
Exercise	Answers
I will have finished my homework by dinner time	मैं अपना गृहकार्य रात के खाने तक समाप्त कर लूँगा
How long will you have lived in this city next year?	आप अगले साल इस शहर में कब तक रहेंगे?
By next summer, they will have built the bridge.	अगली गर्मियों तक, उन्होंने पुल का निर्माण कर लिया होगा।
The plane will have taken off in two hours.	विमान दो घंटे में उड़ान भर चुका होगा।
Marriam will have gone on holiday by this time next year.	मरियम अगले साल इस समय तक छुट्टी पर चली जाएगी।
I will have graduated from this university in two years.	मैंने दो साल में इस विश्वविद्यालय से स्नातक किया होगा।
She will have fallen asleep by the time next year.	वह अगले साल तक सो चुकी होगी।
By the time I arrive from school, the math lesson will have started.	जब तक मैं स्कूल से आऊँगा, तब तक गणित का पाठ समाप्त हो चुका होगा।

Exercise2:

Translate Future Perfect Tense sentences from Hindi to English-
Exercise	Answers
हम दोपहर का भोजन करेंगे।	We will have lunch.
मैंने खरीदारी कर ली होगी।	I will have done the shopping.
उन्होंने टीवी देखा होगा।	They will have watched TV.
आप काम पर गए होंगे।	You will have gone to work.
उसने रात का खाना खा लिया होगा।	He will have eaten dinner.
आपने चाय पी होगी।	You will have drunk tea.
पार्टी खत्म होने पर ऐलिस घर लौट आई होगी।	Alice will have returned home when the party is over.
जब तक वह स्कूल खत्म नहीं कर लेता, तब तक अमेलिया की शादी पॉल से नहीं हुई होगी।	Amelia will not have been married to paul until he finishes school.