Question for future perfect continuous

Question

Hi Everyone,I'm wondering about the following sentence:'Aren't you going to have been writing your project by next week?'Can we say this?I'm working on the future perfect continuous and wondered whether this, theoretically, would be correct. I know the form would normally be, 'Are you not going to have been...'. However, I've heard many native speakers say, 'Aren't we going to...'When you break it down though, the form looks odd to me:Are + not + you + going to...   [this is very odd]yet, we do say, 'aren't you going to ... etc.ThanksMiss stumped.

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

Cup cake'Aren't you going to have been writing your project by next week?'Can we say this?

Well, I certainly wouldn't have the temerity to do so. Why confuse your interlocutor?

Cup cake I know the form would normally be, 'Are you not going to have been...'

Not in my normality.

Cup cakeHowever, I've heard many native speakers say, 'Aren't we going to...'

Yes, yes!

Cup cakeAre + not + you + going to... [this is very odd]

The contraction works differently than the full version.

Are you not? = Aren't you?
Has he not? = Hasn't he?
Will the Donald not? = Won't the Donald?
etc.

Cup cake · Answer

Thanks Mr. M.

I know what you mean about, 'Are you not going to have been...'

I would never say this either, but it's a form nonetheless.
Another English language mystery.

Fivejedjon · Answer

Cup cakeAnother English language mystery

There's no mystery. It's simply that situations in which there might be a need for such a form are very rare indeed. The form is rare because the situation is rare.

Fivejedjon · Answer

When I was training on a Cert TEFL course, I used to ask my trainees, at the end of a session on tenses, whether they thought 'He will have been being interviewed for ...' was acceptable. Generally about half thought it was not possible; and about a quarter were not sure. I would then point out that I had used those words at the beginning of the session, and nobody had questioned them; (they had a standing instruction to question anything I said that seemed unnatural). When some doubted my word, I repeated what I had told them at the beginning of the session. They accepted then that the form was perfectly natural - in that context.

What I had told them:

I may be a little late for our session this afternoon as I am sitting in with X (the course director) when he interviews someone for a new training position. X's interviews can sometimes go on for two hours. After that, the candidate will have a couple of hours with the HR manager, and then an hour or so with the owner of the school. Poor chap! By the time it's over, he will have been being interviewed for over five hours!

ps. I wouldn't dream of teaching this 'future perfect progressive passive' to learners (unless they asked about it), but I think teachers should be aware that such forms are possible. I have all too often had to tell beginning teachers that a form they have just 'corrected' a learner for using was perfectly acceptable.

pps. He is going to have been interviewed is almost possible, with no significant difference in meaning.

Cup cake · Answer

What a great story! Thank you for sharing it.

I find with many students (in my experience) that they tend to agree with everything I say. I'm not so sure that they pay enough attention, or they just don't understand 'everything' when it comes at them at once.

I have a handful of students I privately tutor when not teaching classes. One student constantly nods 'yes', and I know she hasn't a clue as to what I'm saying. Well, she has some, but not much. Granted, she is lower intermediate, but getting better

As for the future perfect continuous/progressive? It's not an aspect I use, and I hate teaching it, because other forms are less complicated and much clearer.

Fivejedjon · Answer

Cup cake I hate teaching it

Then don't teach it unless a context arises in which it is required.Very few learners will ever have any reason to use it outside the classroom.

Cup cake · Answer

Yes, that's so true. I guess it's just an awareness of language, so they at least know.
You're right; many native speakers can't use the tense aspect, much less a non-native.

Happy Friday!

Question for future perfect continuous

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