Future Perfect Continuous Tense: Definition, Usage and Rules

Learn future perfect continuous tenses in English with their rules and example sentences. This lesson is going to be very helpful for you because it contains the Future Perfect Continuous Tense in English with helpful structure, usage, and example sentences. Learn and enhance your knowledge about Tenses.

In this section, we are going to be looking at how the Future Perfect Continuous Tense works and what rules we must follow when using it.

Table of Contents

What is the Future Perfect Continuous?

Action will continue in the future when it is interrupted by another action. This future verb tense often includes an indication of how long the action has been happening.

The Future Perfect Continuous is a verb form or construction used to describe actions that will continue up until a point in the future.

Structure of Future Perfect Continuous Tense

In English, the Future Perfect Progressive is formed by combining the modal “will“, the auxiliary verb “have“, “been“, and the present participle of the main verb (with an -ing ending).

Positive Sentence:

S + will + have + been + V-ing (present participle) +…

Example:

We will have been living in this house for 10 years by next month.

Negative Sentence:

S + will + not + have + been + V-ing (present participle) +…

Example:

I won’t have been traveling to New York for 2 years by the end of October.

Question form:

Will + S + have + been + V-ing (present participle) +… ?

Example:

Will you have been eating vegetables for three months?

Read more about: Present Continuous Tense

How to Use the Future Perfect Continuous Tense

Learn how and when to use the Future Perfect Continuous Tense (or the Future Perfect Progressive) in English with rules, and examples.

The Future Perfect Progressive Tense is used:

To show that something will continue up until a particular event or time in the future

Example:

James will have been teaching at the university for more than a year by the time he leaves for Asia.

To talk about something that finishes just before another time or action (in this case, in the future)

Example:

I will be tired when I get home because I will have been walking for over an hour.

Time Expressions Used with Future Perfect Progressive

By + this year/ month/ week
Next year/ month/ week
For + an hour, for 5 years
By then
Since morning, since 1995
By tomorrow

Future Perfect Continuous Tense Chart | Image

Comparison of Future Perfect Continuous with Other Tenses

1. Future Perfect Continuous vs. Future Continuous

Aspect	Future Perfect Continuous	Future Continuous
Structure	Subject + will + have + been + verb-ing	Subject + will + be + verb-ing
Example	She will have been studying for two hours.	She will be studying at 8 PM.
Usage	Indicates a continuous action that will continue up to a specific point in the future.	Indicates a continuous action that will occur at a specific future time.
Duration	Emphasizes the duration of an action up to a specific point in the future.	Emphasizes the ongoing nature of an action at a specific future time.
Specificity	More specific about the duration of the action.	More specific about the timing of the action.
Example scenario	By the time you arrive, I will have been waiting for an hour.	At 9 PM tonight, I will be watching a movie.

Read more about: Future Continuous Tense

2. Future Perfect Continuous vs. Future Perfect

Aspect	Future Perfect Continuous	Future Perfect
Structure	Subject + will + have + been + verb-ing	Subject + will + have + verb-ed
Example	By next year, I will have been living here for 10 years.	By next year, I will have lived here for 10 years.
Usage	Indicates a continuous action that will continue up to a specific point in the future.	Indicates an action that will be completed before a specific point in the future.
Duration	Emphasizes the duration of an action up to a specific point in the future.	Emphasizes the completion of an action before a specific point in the future.
Specificity	More specific about the continuous duration of the action.	More specific about the completion of the action.
Example scenario	By the time you arrive, I will have been waiting for an hour.	By the time you arrive, I will have finished my homework.

Read more about: Future Perfect Tense in English

3. Future Perfect Continuous vs. Present Perfect Continuous

Aspect	Future Perfect Continuous	Present Perfect Continuous
Structure	Subject + will + have + been + verb-ing	Subject + have/has + been + verb-ing
Example	By 10 PM, I will have been working for 12 hours.	I have been studying since morning.
Usage	Indicates a continuous action that will continue up to a specific point in the future.	Indicates a continuous action that started in the past and continues to the present moment or has recently stopped.
Duration	Emphasizes the duration of an action up to a specific point in the future.	Emphasizes the duration of an action from the past until the present or up to the present moment.
Specificity	More specific about the continuous duration of the action.	Emphasizes the continuity of an action from the past to the present or present moment.
Example scenario	By midnight, I will have been driving for six hours.	She has been working at that company for five years.

Read more about: Present Perfect Continuous

4. Future Perfect Continuous vs. Simple Future

Aspect	Future Perfect Continuous	Simple Future
Structure	Subject + will + have + been + verb-ing	Subject + will + verb (base form)
Example	By tomorrow, I will have been studying for five hours.	I will study tomorrow.
Usage	Indicates a continuous action that will continue up to a specific point in the future.	Indicates an action that will happen in the future, without indicating duration.
Duration	Emphasizes the duration of an action up to a specific point in the future.	Does not specify the duration of the action, only that it will occur in the future.
Specificity	More specific about the continuous duration of the action.	Less specific about the action’s duration, focusing on its occurrence.
Example scenario	By the time you arrive, I will have been waiting for an hour.	I will call you tomorrow.