Futur 2 (German Future Perfect Tense) - Talking about Completed Actions in the Future
You have likely already heard about the future tense in German, which is called “Futur 1”. But, if there is a Futur 1, there has to be a “Futur 2”, right? Of course. Today we are going to learn how to talk about things in the future as if they have already occurred. So grab your notebook and pen and let’s get started.
Pieces That Make Up Futur 2
First, a quick recap. While you can talk about the future in German simply by using the Präsens tense and a time element that implies the future, the official Futur 1 is formed with the verb “werden”, which is slightly irregular, and an infinitive of a secondary verb at the end of the sentence or clause.
Ich werde einen Kuchen backen. -
I will bake a cake.
When we talk about the past in German, we usually use the Perfekt tense. This requires a form of “haben” or “sein” in the conjugated verb spot and a past participle at the end of the sentence or clause.
Ich habe einen Kuchen gebacken. -
I baked a cake.
Ich bin in die Küche gegangen. -
I went into the kitchen.
When we combine these tenses, we get the Futur 2. In English we call this the future perfect, because it combines elements of the English perfect tenses and the future.
In order to do this in German, we conjugate “werden” as we did in the Futur 1, but we put the past participle of the other verb and the infinitive of “haben” or “sein” at the end of the sentence or clause. For example:
Ich werde in die Küche gegangen sein. -
I will have gone into the kitchen.
Ich werde einen Kuchen gebacken haben. -
I will have baked a cake.
How to Form Futur 2
Since this tense is just a mashup/remix of the Futur 1 and the Perfekt tenses, if you already know those tenses, you don’t need to really learn anything new for this tense.
Verbs that use “haben” in the Perfekt tense, use “haben” in the Futur 2. The same is true of the verbs that use “sein” in the Perfekt tense, they use “sein” in the Futur 2.
Futur 2 Reading Comprehension
In 10 Jahren werde ich viel mehr schlafen. -
In 10 years, I will sleep a lot more.
Die Präsidentenwahlen werden nicht so umstritten sein, denn die Amerikaner werden wieder mit ihren Nachbarn gesprochen haben. -
The presidential elections will not be as controversial because Americans will have talked to their neighbors again.
Sie werden herausgefunden haben, dass wir nicht so fremd voneinander sind, als wir gedacht haben. -
They will have discovered that we are not so different from each other as we thought.
Bis dahin wird sich die Welt stark verändert haben. -
By then, the world will have changed a lot.
Viele Länder werden sich auf gemeinsame Ziele geeinigt haben und sie werden globale Krisen hoffentlich unter Kontrolle gebracht haben. -
Many countries will have agreed on common goals and hopefully they will have brought global crises under control.
Die Wissenschaftler werden neue Technologien entwickelt haben, die es uns ermöglichen, sorglos zu leben. -
Scientists will have developed new technologies that will allow us to live carefree.
Die Menschen werden ihre Gewohnheiten geändert haben, und es wird weniger Konflikte um Ressourcen geben, weil wir gelernt haben werden, besser miteinander zu teilen. -
People will have changed their habits and there will be fewer conflicts over resources because we will have learned to share better with each other.
Wir werden die Fehler der Vergangenheit erkannt und unsere Lektionen daraus gelernt haben. -
We will have recognized the mistakes of the past and learned our lessons from them.
Auch im Alltag wird sich vieles verändert haben. -
Much will have changed in everyday life too.
Weise Menschen werden neue Transportmittel erfunden haben. -
Wise people will have invented new means of transportation.
Die Städte werden sich an diese neuen Möglichkeiten angepasst haben. -
Cities will have adapted to these new possibilities.
Die Menschen werden weniger Zeit in Staus verbracht haben. -
People will have spent less time in traffic jams.
Viele werden von zu Hause aus gearbeitet haben. -
Many will have worked from home.
In 10 Jahren werden wir vielleicht zurückblicken und uns fragen, warum wir so lange gebraucht haben, um diese Dinge zu verstehen. -
In 10 years we may look back and wonder why it took us so long to understand these things.
Doch eines ist sicher: Wir werden viele Fortschritte gemacht und eine bessere Zukunft aufgebaut haben. -
But one thing is certain: we will have made a lot of progress and built a better future.
Learn All 6 Tenses in German
That's right! You are getting close to learning all of the tenses in German. Take a look at the list of tenses below and see if you know them all.
All 6 Tenses Explained (Briefly)
How to Translate 6 German Tenses into 12 English Tenses and Back
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