Sometimes we tell a story about the past and need to talk about what was still in the future at that moment: plans, predictions, promises and intentions. This is the future in the past, and it is essential for narratives, reported speech and reading comprehension.Às vezes contamos uma história no passado e precisamos falar do que ainda era futuro naquele momento: planos, previsões, promessas e intenções. Esse é o future in the past, essencial para narrativas, discurso indireto e interpretação de texto.
The basic idea
Take any future form and move it one step back into the past: will becomes would, am going to becomes was going to, is about to becomes was about to, am leaving becomes was leaving.Pegue qualquer forma de futuro e passe-a um passo para o passado: will vira would, am going to vira was going to, is about to vira was about to, am leaving vira was leaving.
B2 Would for the future in the past
We use would + base form for predictions, promises, offers and decisions that were in the future when we look back from a past moment. It corresponds to the Portuguese futuro do pretérito: “ia fazer”, “faria”.Usamos would + verbo na forma base para previsões, promessas, ofertas e decisões que estavam no futuro quando olhamos a partir de um momento passado. Corresponde ao futuro do pretérito em português: “faria”, “ia fazer”.
- I knew you would pass the exam. (Eu sabia que você ia passar na prova.)
- She promised she would call me after the interview. (Ela prometeu que me ligaria depois da entrevista.)
- In 2010, nobody imagined that phones would replace cameras. (Em 2010, ninguém imaginava que os celulares substituiriam as câmeras.)
- That was the day I met the woman who would become my wife. (Aquele foi o dia em que conheci a mulher que viria a ser minha esposa.)
The last example shows a literary use: would tells us what happened later in the story, like the Portuguese “viria a”. The negative wouldn’t can also mean refusal in the past.O último exemplo mostra um uso literário: would conta o que aconteceu depois na história, como o “viria a” do português. A negativa wouldn’t também pode indicar recusa no passado.
- The car wouldn’t start this morning. (O carro não queria pegar hoje de manhã.)
B2 Was going to and the past continuous
Was / were going to + base form describes past plans and intentions. Very often the plan did not happen, so it is perfect for excuses and changes of plan. The past continuous describes arrangements that were already fixed.Was / were going to + verbo na forma base descreve planos e intenções do passado. Muitas vezes o plano não se realizou, por isso é ótimo para desculpas e mudanças de planos. O past continuous descreve compromissos que já estavam marcados.
- I was going to study last night, but I fell asleep. (Eu ia estudar ontem à noite, mas peguei no sono.)
- We were going to travel to Bahia, but the flights were too expensive. (A gente ia viajar para a Bahia, mas as passagens estavam caras demais.)
- Look at those clouds. I knew it was going to rain. (Olha essas nuvens. Eu sabia que ia chover.)
- I couldn’t go to the party because I was flying to Manaus the next morning. (Não pude ir à festa porque ia voar para Manaus na manhã seguinte.)
would
Prediction, promise or decision seen from the past.Previsão, promessa ou decisão vista do passado.
He said he would help us. (Ele disse que ia nos ajudar.)
was going to
Plan or intention, often one that did not happen.Plano ou intenção, muitas vezes que não se realizou.
He was going to help us, but he got sick. (Ele ia nos ajudar, mas ficou doente.)
Teacher’s tip
In Portuguese we say “eu ia” for almost everything. In English, choose was going to for an interrupted plan and would after verbs like knew, thought, said, promised and hoped.Em português dizemos “eu ia” para quase tudo. Em inglês, escolha was going to para um plano interrompido e would depois de verbos como knew, thought, said, promised e hoped.
B2 Was about to, was to and was due to
The other future forms also move into the past. Was about to describes something that was going to happen immediately, often interrupted. Was due to describes a scheduled event. Was to is formal and is common in biographies and history texts.As outras formas de futuro também vão para o passado. Was about to descreve algo que ia acontecer imediatamente, muitas vezes interrompido. Was due to descreve um evento programado. Was to é formal e comum em biografias e textos de história.
| Example | Português | Use |
|---|---|---|
| I was about to leave when Ana knocked on the door. | Eu estava quase saindo quando a Ana bateu na porta. | immediate future, interrupted |
| The meeting was due to start at nine. | A reunião estava marcada para começar às nove. | schedule |
| Santos Dumont was to become a national hero. | Santos Dumont viria a se tornar um herói nacional. | destiny (formal narrative) |
| We were to meet at the station at six. | Nós íamos nos encontrar na estação às seis. | arrangement |
To say that a plan was made but did not happen, use was / were to have + past participle. This structure is formal and frequent in written English.Para dizer que um plano foi feito mas não aconteceu, use was / were to have + particípio. Essa estrutura é formal e frequente no inglês escrito.
- The bridge was to have opened in 2020, but the work stopped. (A ponte deveria ter sido inaugurada em 2020, mas a obra parou.)
- I was just about to send the email when the internet went down. (Eu estava quase enviando o e-mail quando a internet caiu.)
B2 Reported speech and the future in the past
When the reporting verb is in the past, future forms usually move back. This is one of the most common places where you need the future in the past.Quando o verbo introdutor está no passado, as formas de futuro normalmente recuam um tempo. Esse é um dos lugares mais comuns em que você precisa do future in the past.
| Direct speech | Reported speech | Português |
|---|---|---|
| “I will be late.” | She said she would be late. | Ela disse que ia se atrasar. |
| “We‘re going to move.” | They said they were going to move. | Eles disseram que iam se mudar. |
| “I‘m leaving tomorrow.” | He said he was leaving the next day. | Ele disse que ia embora no dia seguinte. |
| “I‘ll have finished by six.” | She said she would have finished by six. | Ela disse que teria terminado até as seis. |
Still true now?
If the future event is still in the future when you report it, you can keep will: “She said she will come to the party next week.” Both forms are correct; moving back to would is always safe.Se o evento ainda está no futuro quando você o relata, pode manter will: “She said she will come to the party next week.” As duas formas estão corretas; recuar para would é sempre seguro.
- The teacher told us the test would be on Monday. (A professora disse que a prova seria na segunda.)
- I thought you were going to bring the drinks. (Eu achei que você ia trazer as bebidas.)
Common Mistakes
Watch out
✗ I knew you will win. ✓ I knew you would win.Depois de um verbo no passado como knew, o will normalmente vira would.
✗ I would go to the gym yesterday, but it rained. ✓ I was going to go to the gym yesterday, but it rained.Para um plano que não aconteceu, use was going to, não would.
✗ She was going to helped me. ✓ She was going to help me.Depois de going to o verbo fica na forma base.
✗ The bridge was to open in 2020, but it never opened. ✓ The bridge was to have opened in 2020.Para um plano frustrado na linguagem formal, use was to have + particípio.
Quick Summary
| Form | Example | Português |
|---|---|---|
| would + verb | I knew she would say yes. | Eu sabia que ela ia dizer sim. |
| was going to + verb | I was going to call you. | Eu ia te ligar. |
| past continuous | We were leaving the next day. | Nós íamos embora no dia seguinte. |
| was about to + verb | I was about to go out. | Eu estava quase saindo. |
| was to + verb | He was to become president. | Ele viria a ser presidente. |
| was to have + participle | It was to have opened in May. | Era para ter sido inaugurado em maio. |
Practice Time
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