Will or going to future

[daniar]

Hello, native English speakers!
I was watching an English film. There was a scene where the family sat around the table and talked about there plans. The father told the others : We'll go to Germany next week." We'll, it's a personal plan , so why didn't he use going to future? I've heard such kind of setences before , like "I'll go to Spain tomorrow.". Is the usage of will future here correct and if it is please explain it to me?!

 

[owlman5]

Hello, daniar. I assume the father said "We'll go to Germany (not German) next week."

I use both "will" and "am going to" when I talk about things I plan to do. As far as I know, there's nothing unusual about using "will" in such statements.

 

[Rival]

... "We'll go to German next week." ... so why didn't he use going to future?

If he had used the 'going to' future with the verb 'to go', the result would have been "We are going to go to Germany next week" -- which sounds a bit clumsy with the two go's so close, (even though it is grammatically correct). I guess that's why he avoided it.
.

 

[cfrong78]

He could say "We will be going to Germany...", "We'll be going...", "We are going...", "We're going...". There are several different ways to communicate this idea.

 

[daniar]

At school we are taught that using simple future is incorrect in this kind of situations. All English- teaching sites I've seen on the net say the same:" we use be going to for personal plans,not will.". If I write "will" in such cases on any test they say it's not correct. What do you think?

 

[daniar]

Also, about avoiding two go's, well, I'm just talking in general about will future in such statements. I can also think of using present progressive tense.

 

[owlman5]

I don't disagree with those sites you mention, daniar, but I think that advice is a little too broad to be accurate. What exactly do you mean by "personal plans"? Here's an example of a personal plan that I express by using "will". It sounds entirely normal to me and is similar to things that I say every day:

Lisa: Jeff, have you gone to lunch yet?
Jeff: I'll go after I finish this file.

I certainly don't feel obligated to say "I am going after I finish this file" even though that is what I plan to do.

I do think I'd be more likely to say "I'm going to California next week" than "I'll go to California next week." However, the last sentence is certainly possible in my personal speech - especially so if I have the firm intention of going to California next week.

 

[nighhunter]

I do think I'd be more likely to say "I'm going to California next week" than "I'll go to California next week." However, the last sentence is certainly possible in my personal speech - especially so if I have the firm intention of going to California next week.

Thanks man, I always had this doubt

 

[se16teddy]

We'll go to Germany next week.

What makes you think that a plan (personal or not) exists at the time of speaking, Daniar? I wouldn't use this form to enunciate a plan previously agreed. But if a plan already exists and is known to everyone at the table, why is the father mentioning it at the table? I would use the "we'll" in a range of situations, for example if the emphasis was on consent - for example if the father is proposing going to Germany next week as part of a negotiation process.

 

[daniar]

I absolutely agree with you,se16teddy. Well, that's situation: the father and the mother has planned this trip before, before telling the children, and that's why I was confused the usage of will-future here. I've heard some people using simple future in such cases. So, as I can see, American do use will future for "previously" made plans- personal or not. British don't.

 

[se16teddy]

So, as I can see, American do use will future for "previously" made plans- personal or not. British don't.

There may be a small flaw in this analysis: the film is an English one, not an American one.

 

[daniar]

I asked my teacher and she told me that will future can be used for action that are planned and ORGANISED, like present progressive. I'm still not sure because I haven't read anything about that before. And about the film, oh it's American, not an English one.

 

[daniar]

Hello, native English speakers.
I watched a film about a family taking a trip to Germany. At first, the parents decided to start the journey, and then they told the children. The family sat around the table and the father said:"We will go to Germany next week.". I was very surprised by this and I asked my teacher. She told me that "will" can be used when the action is planned and ORGANISED. I still doubt it because I haven't read anything like this before. Do you think the usage of will future is correct,and is my teacher's explanation right... and more important-WHY?

<<Moderator note: I have merged these threads because they are actually on the same topic and context. A new thread was not needed. There are also prior threads on "will going to" in which the rule (often taught to English learners), mentioned by your teacher, is considered too broad by most native speakers.>>

 

[Parla]

There's nothing wrong with the sentence. It's simple future tense, a statement that something is to take place in the future.

 

[daniar]

I've looked up in several sites and they say the same thing as my grammar books:"Do not use will future for plans made before the time of speaking."The case here is the same- a plan made before speaking, an intention. So I still can't understand why you would use simple future with will,which is absolutely incorrect according to all I've read till now.

 

[Parla]

I've never heard of such a rule, and it's wrong.

 

[daniar]

What??????????? http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/will-or-be-going-to.html

Future Tense with “Going To” - WordPress – www.wordpress.com
See these one.The second is not a link, just write it on Google and you'll see it . That's where I've taken the rule from.

 

[daniar]

Parla,I just can't agree with you.

 

[JustKate]

I agree with Parla. Either this "rule" is wrong, or we just aren't understanding what you're saying, Daniar. Here are some sentences that all represent perfectly correct speech to me - and, as far as I know, to most English speakers:

A: "When do you go to California?"
B: "I'll go next week." (Or "I'm going to go next week" or "I go next week" or just "Next week.")

A: "Where will we be going on vacation?"
B: "We'll go to California." (Or "We're going to California" or just "California" or any of several possibilities.)

 

[Myridon]

What??????????? http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/will-or-be-going-to.html

Let's take one of the differences mentioned here:
"A decision at the moment of speaking:" vs "A decision before the moment of speaking:"
Let's think about "at the moment of speaking." Surely you're not deciding as you're speaking (you don't decide after you say "I ..."), so you must have decided before you started speaking by enough time to have made the decision and become sure enough about the decision to say something about it. In other words, you made the decision "before the moment of speaking." We don't stop and think "Which verb should I use? Did I make this decision 3 seconds ago, 30 seconds ago, 1 minute ago, 1 day ago?" No, whatever verb pops into our head falls right out.

 

[daniar]

So we can use both will and going to for intentions?

 

[daniar]

... and you don't agree with what is written in this site?

 

[JustKate]

So we can use both will and going to for intentions?

Yes. The different verbs can add a slightly different emphasis - for example, "I will go" sounds more definite than "I'm going to go." There are other times when we're more likely to use one verb form or another based on the context. For example, if someone asked me a question that used will, I might be more likely to answer that question using will, too. But none of these are required.

There is no clear-cut rule, not that I'm aware of, anyway. I think your grammar books and the grammar websites are trying to give you a useful guideline to help you choose between will and going to, but in their quest to help you, they are oversimplifying if they tell you this is a rule. There is no rule about this, so as you listen to native speakers, you'll find many, many exceptions.

 

[daniar]

Thanks, now I see. I thought that everything's absolutely strict, but I was actually wrong.