Lesson

Future perfect continuous

Complex future

≈ 15 min 8 block(s)

Text

What is the Future Perfect Continuous?

The future perfect continuous describes an action that will be ongoing up until a specific point in the future. It emphasizes the duration of that action.

  • Form: will have been + present participle (verb+ing).
  • Use it to show how long something will have been happening by a future time.
  • Common time markers: by, by the time, for, since, by next month/year, by 2026.

Table

Structure and Examples

Form Use Example
Affirmative: Subject + will have been + verb-ing Emphasize duration up to a future point By July, she will have been managing the team for two years.
Negative: Subject + will not have been + verb-ing (won't have been ...) Say something will not have been happening long enough or at all By the deadline, they won't have been testing the app for a full week.
Question: Will + subject + have been + verb-ing? Ask about duration up to a future time Will you have been attending the training for six months by June?
Short form: 'I'll have been ...' is common in speech Casual or spoken future perfect continuous I'll have been working here three years by next April.

Tip

Key rule: Form and emphasis

Use 'will have been + -ing' to stress how long an activity will have lasted by a future point.

  • Use 'for' + duration (for three years) or 'since' + start point (since 2019).
  • 'By' or 'by the time' indicate the future reference point.
  • Choose future perfect continuous when duration (not completion) is the focus.

If you want to emphasize completion rather than duration, use the future perfect (will have + past participle).

Example

Examples in context

By next quarter, I will have been leading the project for eight months.

By the time you arrive, they will have been negotiating the contract for several hours.

She will have been working remotely for two years by the end of this month.

Will the marketing team have been testing the campaign for long enough by launch day?

Tip

Common mistakes to avoid

Avoid errors that change meaning or produce ungrammatical forms.

  • Using the future perfect (will have + past participle) when you need to show duration.
  • Forgetting 'been' and writing 'will have working' instead of 'will have been working'.
  • Using 'since' with a duration instead of a start point (use 'since 2019', not 'since two years').
  • Mixing up time markers: 'by' indicates a deadline/point, while 'for' indicates duration.

Check both the auxiliary verbs and the -ing form to ensure the correct structure.

Quiz

Choose the sentence that correctly uses the future perfect continuous:

Hint: Focus on the structure 'will have been + verb-ing' and the correct use of 'for' with durations.

Quiz

Complete: By 2026, she _____ at the company for ten years.

Hint: Think about how to show duration continuing up to a specific future year.

Quiz

Which question correctly uses the future perfect continuous?

Hint: Recall the question word order for perfect continuous tenses: Will + subject + have been + -ing?

Key Points

GrammarPoint

future perfect continuous

grammar_point CEFR B2 //ˈfjuːtʃər ˈpɜːrfɪkt kənˈtɪnjʊəs//

A tense that shows how long an action will have been happening up to a point in the future (will have been + -ing).

By December, the team will have been collaborating for six months.

GrammarPoint

will have been

auxiliary CEFR B1 //wɪl hæv bɪn//

Auxiliary sequence used before a verb-ing to form the future perfect continuous tense.

By 5 PM, I will have been waiting for three hours.

Vocabulary

for

preposition CEFR A2 //fɔːr//

Used to indicate a period or duration of time.

She will have been studying for three years by June.

Vocabulary

since

preposition CEFR B1 //sɪns//

Used to indicate the starting point of a period of time.

He will have been with the company since 2018 by next year.

GrammarPoint

present participle (-ing form)

grammar_term CEFR A2 //ˈprɛzənt pɑːˈtɪsɪpəl//

The -ing form of a verb used after auxiliaries (e.g., been + working).

They will have been traveling for weeks by the time they return.

Vocabulary

duration

noun CEFR B2 //djʊəˈreɪʃən//

The length of time an action or state continues.

We will have been evaluating the supplier for six months by March.