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Future perfect simple (I will have worked eight hours)

Future perfect simple: form​

We use will/shall + have + the -ed form of the verb.

We use shall only for future time reference with I and we. Shall is more formal than will.


singular and plural

+I, weshe, he, it, you, they(full form)will or shallwillhave worked
I, she, he, it, you, we, they(short form)’ll
−I, weshe, he, it, you, they(full form)will not or shall notwill nothave worked
I, weshe, he, it, you, they(short form)won’t or shan’twon’t
? + Will? − Won’tI, she, he, it, you, we, they
have worked?

Note: Shall I, shall we and shan’t I, shan’t we in future perfect questions are rare.

Future perfect simple: use​

Events finished by a certain time in the future

We use the future perfect form when we look back to the past from a point in the future. We usually use a time phrase, for example by tomorrow, for three years:

  • Do you think she*’ll have seen** the doctor by four o’clock?*
  • Next month my parents will have been together for thirty years.
  • At the end of this month, they will have been in their house for one year.
  • Next month I will have worked for the company for six years.
  • I think they*’ll have got** there by six o’clock.*
  • Won’t she have retired by the end of the year? (more common than Will she not have retired?)