YOUR FUTURE IS ALSO PERFECT

The Future Perfect is another perfect Spanish tense.  As you may recall, sentences in the perfect tenses are compound.  That is to say they have two parts:  The proper conjugation of the verb ‘haber’ (to have or will have done something) and a past participle (done, made, said, closed, seen etc.).    The Future Perfect is most often used to express something that will have happened by, or at a certain time.   Also, it can be used to express what could have happened or must have happened, like expressing conjecture or probability of something that took place in the recent past.

Like the Present Perfect tense, the Future Perfect is not that difficult to master.  The key to both (and other perfect tenses) is being familiar with the correct conjugation of haber and knowing a lot of past participles.

Lets look at the first part of a sentence in the Future Perfect, the various conjugations of haber:

Habré – I will have done something

Habrá – You, he, she, or it will have done something.

Habrás – You will have done something (informal).

Habrán – They will have done something.

Habremos – We will have done something.  

Have you been learning more past participles?  The second part, the 'something' that will be done, is stated by a past participle.  Try to learn as many past participles as you can.  Past participles are used in all of the perfect Spanish tenses.   Also past participles come in handy in other areas of conversation.

Remember, all past participles come from a raw verb (an infinitive).  Regular past participles are formed like this:  For AR verbs drop the ar and replace with ado.  For ER and IR verbs drop the er or ir and replace with ido.  Here are a few more regular past participles in addition to the ones listed in the article on the Present Perfect:

Ir, to go – Ido.

Escuchar, to listen – Escuchado.

Visitar, to visit – Visitado.

Conocer, to be familiar with. – Conocido.

Tomar, to take or to drink – Tomado.

And remember there are some irregular past participles.  They must be memorized:

Abrir, to open – Abierto.

Devolver, to return something – Devuelto.

Morir, to die – Muerto.

Freir, to fry – Frito.

Oponer, to oppose – Opuesto. 

Ok!  Time to put haber and the past participles together to form some sentences in the Future Perfect!

I will have the house painted by tomorrow. – Habré pintado la casa para manaña.

Will you have the work finished by this afternoon? – ¿Habrá terminado el trabajo para esta tarde?

They will be opposed to it. – Lo habrán opuesto. 

This July, we will have known each other for two years. – Este Julio, nos habremos conocido por dos años.

Now lets look at some examples on when the Future Perfect is used to express probability, conjecture or what must have happened in the recent past:

I  (probably fell) must have fallen asleep (dormir). -  (Me) habré dormido.

You (probably have) must have been here before. – Habrá estado aquí antes.

Where could they have gone? - ¿Adónde habrán ido?

We (probably got) must have gotten lost. – (Nos) habremos perdido.

Not so difficult right?  As long as you know the Future Perfect conjugations of haber and a lot of past participles, you will not have any problems talking in the Future Perfect.  Just remember when you hear or want to say what will have happened or what must have happened, you will use the Future Perfect!

Hope this helps, and thanks for reading.

Fred

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Hi, my name is Fred.  My background in Spanish is a year in high school
(long ago) and the last five years taking private lessons almost daily, in
the States and in Panamá'.    I am not yet fluent, but maybe I can pass
on to you some tips to help your Spanish learning experience.