Futur proche in French

The futur proche, or near future, is a commonly used tense in French to talk about events that will happen in the immediate future. It's equivalent to "going to" in English.

Formation

To form the futur proche:

1. Conjugate the verb "aller" in the present tense
2. Add the infinitive of the main verb

Example:

• Je vais manger (I'm going to eat)
• Tu vas dormir (You're going to sleep)
• Nous allons partir (We're going to leave)

Usage

The futur proche is used for:

1. Actions that will happen soon

   • Je vais prendre une douche. (I'm going to take a shower.)

2. Planned future events

   • Nous allons voyager en France cet été. (We're going to travel to France this summer.)

3. Intentions or decisions made in the moment

   • Il pleut. Je vais prendre un parapluie. (It's raining. I'm going to take an umbrella.)

Futur proche vs. Simple Future

While the futur proche expresses near-future events, the simple future is used for more distant or less certain events. Compare:

• Je vais acheter une voiture le mois prochain. (I'm going to buy a car next month.)
• J'achèterai une voiture un jour. (I will buy a car someday.)

Remember, the futur proche is a useful and common way to express future actions in French, especially in everyday conversations.