The most common way to say “future” in French is, unsurprisingly, le futur. But what if you want to talk about what's coming up, your plans for tomorrow, or what will happen in the distant future?

As you continue your French learning journey, being able to talk about your future plans and aspirations is a key step towards fluency.

Let’s dive into nine different ways to talk about the “future” in French!

1. The standard 'future' – le futur

The most direct equivalent to the English "will + verb" is the futur simple, often just called le futur. It's a single-word tense used to talk about future events, predictions, or firm intentions. While common in writing and formal speech, it's one of the two main ways to express the future in French.

Forming the futur simple for regular verbs is wonderfully straightforward. You simply take the verb's infinitive (the full, unconjugated form like parler, finir, or vendre) and add the appropriate ending. For verbs ending in -re, you drop the final 'e' before adding the ending.

The endings are the same for all verb groups and are based on the verb avoir:

je: -ai
tu: -as
il/elle/on: -a
nous: -ons
vous: -ez
ils/elles: -ont

For example, parler (to speak) becomes je parlerai (I will speak), and finir (to finish) becomes tu finiras (you will finish).

Of course, French wouldn't be French without irregular verbs! Many of the most common verbs have an irregular stem in the futur simple, but they still use the same set of endings listed above. You just need to memorize the new stem.

Here are some of the most crucial irregular stems to learn:

être (to be) → ser- (e.g., je serai - I will be)
avoir (to have) → aur- (e.g., tu auras - you will have)
aller (to go) → ir- (e.g., il ira - he will go)
faire (to do/make) → fer- (e.g., nous ferons - we will do)
venir (to come) → viendr- (e.g., vous viendrez - you will come)
voir (to see) → verr- (e.g., ils verront - they will see)

The futur simple is typically used for:

Formal contexts: It's the standard in professional writing, news reports, and formal speeches.
Predictions: Especially for weather or events outside of your control (e.g., Il pleuvra demain - It will rain tomorrow).
Distant future plans: For actions that are further off or less immediate than those expressed with the futur proche.
'If... then' clauses: In sentences with si (if), the futur simple is used in the main clause (e.g., Si j'ai le temps, je t'appellerai - If I have time, I will call you).

💡 * L'année prochaine, nous voyagerons en Italie.

Quand seras-tu prêt ?

Je pense qu'il aura du succès dans sa carrière.

Vous finirez vos devoirs avant de sortir.

Ils ne le feront pas sans notre permission.

The 'what is to come' – l'avenir

When discussing the future in French, one of the most common and nuanced words you'll encounter is l'avenir.

Literally translating to 'what is to come' (from à-venir), l'avenir refers to the future in a general, often personal or undetermined sense. It’s the unfolding of time that lies ahead, distinct from a specific, measurable point in the future.

So, what's the difference between l'avenir and le futur? While both mean 'future,' le futur is often used for the grammatical future tense or for more concrete, planned events (e.g., les voitures du futur – the cars of the future). L'avenir, on the other hand, is more abstract and relates to one's personal destiny, career prospects, or the general course of events.

L'avenir carries a sense of potential, uncertainty, and personal journey. It’s the word you use when you talk about your hopes and dreams, the future of humanity, or what fate has in store. It has a more philosophical and less technical feel than le futur.

You'll often hear it in phrases like penser à l'avenir (to think about the future), quel est ton projet d'avenir ? (what are your plans for the future?), or the classic l'avenir nous le dira (the future will tell us).

In essence, using l'avenir is less about scheduling an event and more about contemplating the path that has yet to be walked.

💡 * Il faut penser à l'avenir de nos enfants.

Personne ne sait ce que l'avenir nous réserve.

Elle a un grand avenir dans la musique.

L'avenir de la planète est entre nos mains.

The 'morrow' or 'the day after' – le lendemain

Le lendemain is a key French noun used to express the concept of 'the next day' or 'the day after', particularly when narrating past events.

Unlike demain (tomorrow), which is relative to the present moment, le lendemain refers to the day that followed a specific point in the past. Think of it as the 'tomorrow' of a past event.

Le lendemain functions as a noun, which is why it is almost always preceded by the definite article le. It is invariable and masculine. Its primary role is to structure a narrative and indicate the sequence of events.

The distinction is crucial. Use demain when talking about the future from today's perspective: Je pars demain (I'm leaving tomorrow). Use le lendemain when recounting a story in the past: Il est parti le lendemain (He left the next day).

You might also see variations like le lendemain matin (the next morning) or le surlendemain (the day after the next day / two days later) to add more specificity to a timeline.

💡 * La fête s'est terminée tard. Le lendemain, personne ne s'est levé avant midi. (The party ended late. The next day, nobody got up before noon.)

Il a eu son diplôme le vendredi. Le lendemain, il a commencé son nouveau travail. (He graduated on Friday. The day after, he started his new job.)

Nous avons eu une grosse dispute, mais le lendemain, tout était oublié. (We had a big argument, but the next day, all was forgotten.)

Elle a reçu la nouvelle le soir ; le lendemain matin, elle a pris le premier train. (She received the news in the evening; the next morning, she took the first train.)

The 'future generations' or 'posterity' – la postérité

The 'future generations' or 'posterity' – la postérité

La postérité is a French noun that translates directly to 'posterity.' It refers to all future generations of people, viewed as a collective group. It's the concept of the people who will live long after we are gone.

This term is more formal and literary. You'll often encounter la postérité in discussions about history, legacy, art, and the long-term impact of a person's work or actions. It’s about how someone or something will be remembered by future generations.

As a key grammatical point, la postérité is a feminine noun. This is important for agreement, as you would say 'la lointaine postérité' (the distant posterity). It is almost always used in the singular form.

💡 * Il a écrit ce livre pour la postérité. (He wrote this book for posterity.)

Ses actions seront jugées par la postérité. (His actions will be judged by posterity.)

Cet artiste voulait laisser une trace pour la postérité. (This artist wanted to leave a mark for future generations.)

Nous devons préserver ces monuments pour la postérité. (We must preserve these monuments for posterity.)

The 'prospect' or 'outlook' – la perspective

The French word la perspective is a versatile feminine noun. Its meaning changes with context, but its core English translations are 'prospect,' 'outlook,' 'viewpoint,' or the direct cognate 'perspective.'

A primary use of la perspective is to talk about the future. It describes potential developments or opportunities. For example, les perspectives économiques refers to the 'economic outlook,' and les perspectives de carrière means 'career prospects.'

It also commonly refers to a mental 'point of view' or 'angle' on a topic. The phrase mettre les choses en perspective means 'to put things into perspective,' which involves considering a situation from a broader, more objective standpoint.

In a visual or artistic sense, la perspective refers to the physical view from a certain point or the artistic technique for creating an illusion of depth. You might hear une belle perspective sur la mer ('a beautiful view of the sea') or learn about la perspective in an art class.

Don't forget the grammar! La perspective is a feminine noun. This means you must use feminine articles and adjectives with it, such as une perspective intéressante (an interesting perspective) or cette perspective (this perspective).

💡 * Les perspectives d'emploi pour les jeunes diplômés sont encourageantes. (The job prospects for young graduates are encouraging.)

Il faut changer de perspective pour comprendre son point de vue. (You have to change your perspective to understand his point of view.)

L'artiste a utilisé la perspective pour donner de la profondeur à son tableau. (The artist used perspective to give depth to his painting.)

Cette nouvelle nous ouvre de nouvelles perspectives. (This news opens up new prospects for us.)

The grammatical 'near future' – le futur proche

In French, le futur proche (the near future) is a verb tense used to describe an action that is going to happen very soon. It is the direct equivalent of the English construction "going to + verb." It's extremely common in spoken French to talk about immediate plans and upcoming events.

Forming the futur proche is straightforward. You simply conjugate the verb aller (to go) in the present tense and follow it with the infinitive (the unconjugated form) of the main verb. The structure is: Subject + aller (present tense) + infinitive verb.

To use the futur proche, you must know the present tense of aller:

je **vais** (I am going)
tu **vas** (you are going)
il/elle/on **va** (he/she/one is going)
nous **allons** (we are going)
vous **allez** (you are going)
ils/elles **vont** (they are going)

Use le futur proche for actions that are certain or planned for the immediate future, whether it's in the next few seconds, later today, or even next week. It conveys a stronger sense of certainty and immediacy than the simple future tense (le futur simple). For example, Je vais appeler ma mère implies you are about to do it, while J'appellerai ma mère is a more general statement about a future action.

💡 * Je vais manger une pomme. (I am going to eat an apple.)

Nous allons partir en vacances demain. (We are going to leave for vacation tomorrow.)

Attention, le verre va tomber ! (Watch out, the glass is going to fall!)

Qu'est-ce que vous allez faire ce week-end ? (What are you going to do this weekend?)

1. The Grammatical 'Simple Future' – Le Futur Simple

The futur simple, or simple future tense, is the primary way to talk about future events in French. It corresponds directly to the English "will + verb" construction and is used to express future plans, predictions, or formal instructions. Unlike the futur proche (near future), which uses a form of aller + infinitive, the futur simple is a single, conjugated verb.

Forming the futur simple for regular verbs is very straightforward. You take the infinitive form of the verb (e.g., parler, finir) and add the future tense endings: -ai, -as, -a, -ons, -ez, -ont. For verbs ending in -re, you must drop the final 'e' before adding the endings (e.g., vendre becomes vendr-).

Many of the most common French verbs are irregular in the futur simple. While they use the same endings as regular verbs, their stems change. Some essential irregular stems to memorize include être -> ser-, avoir -> aur-, aller -> ir-, faire -> fer-, and voir -> verr-.

💡 * Demain, il pleuvra. (Tomorrow, it will rain.)

Nous finirons ce projet la semaine prochaine. (We will finish this project next week.)

Tu seras en retard si tu ne pars pas maintenant. (You will be late if you don't leave now.)

Qu'est-ce que vous ferez ce week-end ? (What will you do this weekend?)

The phrase for 'in the future' – à l'avenir

One of the most common ways to say “in the future” in French is with the expression à l'avenir. It's a key phrase for expressing future intentions and changes.

While à l'avenir translates to “in the future,” it more specifically means “from now on” or “henceforth.” It implies a shift or a change from the present moment forward, often used when making a resolution or a decision that will affect future actions.

You'll often hear à l'avenir used to set new expectations or give a warning. For example, a teacher might tell a student, “À l'avenir, rendez vos devoirs à temps” (From now on, turn in your homework on time). It establishes a new rule or standard starting now.

It’s useful to distinguish à l'avenir from dans le futur. Dans le futur refers to a more general, often distant future (e.g., “flying cars will exist dans le futur”). In contrast, à l'avenir connects directly to the present and means “starting from this point forward.”

💡 * À l'avenir, je serai plus ponctuel. (In the future / From now on, I will be more punctual.)

Il faudra être plus prudent à l'avenir. (We will have to be more careful in the future.)

À l'avenir, toutes les réunions commenceront à 9h précises. (From now on, all meetings will start at 9 a.m. sharp.)

1. The 'long-term' future – le long terme

The most direct way to say 'the long-term' in French is le long terme. This noun phrase functions almost identically to its English counterpart, referring to a prolonged or distant period in the future. It's a key phrase in discussions about planning, strategy, and future consequences.

Very often, you'll see le long terme used with a preposition to form an adverbial phrase. The most common is à long terme, which translates to 'in the long term' or 'long-term'. For example, you might talk about une stratégie à long terme (a long-term strategy).

This phrase is widely used in formal and professional contexts, especially in business, finance, and politics. It's the standard term for discussing future planning, such as des investissements à long terme (long-term investments) or la durabilité à long terme (long-term sustainability).

To better understand le long terme, it's useful to know its opposite: le court terme (the short-term). Just like its counterpart, it's often used as à court terme (in the short-term). Contrasting these two helps clarify when to use each phrase appropriately.

💡 * C'est un bon investissement à long terme. (It's a good long-term investment.)

Nous devons élaborer une stratégie sur le long terme. (We need to develop a long-term strategy.)

Les bénéfices de cette décision ne seront visibles qu'à long terme. (The benefits of this decision will only be visible in the long term.)

Penser à long terme est essentiel pour la protection de l'environnement. (Thinking long-term is essential for protecting the environment.)

Are there other ways to say 'future' in French?

Are there other ways to say “future” in French?

Our guide has covered the most essential ways to discuss the future in French, from the futur simple tense to the common noun l'avenir. However, the French language is rich with nuance, offering more specific, literary, or even idiomatic expressions to talk about what's to come.

To discover more, try searching online for “synonymes pour avenir” or “expressions sur le futur”. This can help you find more specific terms and understand the subtle differences between them.

As you immerse yourself in French media, pay attention to how different words for 'future' are used. A political speech might use l'avenir, while a science fiction novel might explore le futur. Context is key to mastering these nuances.

For a detailed breakdown of related words and phrases, check out the entries for futur and avenir on a resource like the Larousse dictionary or WordReference. The example sentences are particularly helpful for understanding correct usage.

I hope this guide has helped you feel more confident about discussing what lies ahead. Let's end with an inspiring quote from the renowned French author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry: Pour ce qui est de l'avenir, il ne s'agit pas de le prévoir, mais de le rendre possible. (As for the future, it is not a matter of predicting it, but of making it possible.)

'9 ways to say "future" in French'