I call/I am calling/I am going to call (2025)

cisarro

Senior Member

Chilean spanish

  • Jun 8, 2011
  • #1

Hello folks!

I'm confused about some future tenses which use the present tense. For example:

A) Tomorrow i call you (present simple)
B) Tomorrow i am calling you (present continuous)
C) Tomorrow i am going to call you (to be going + infinitive)

I know that these sentences have different shades but i can't to distinguish these differences I call/I am calling/I am going to call (2)

  • kayokid

    Senior Member

    Chicago

    English, USA

    • Jun 8, 2011
    • #2

    Hello. I think you are confusing some grammatical terms.
    The present tense is one thing and the future tense is another.

    A) I call you every day, is present tense. (Notice that "I" is always capitalized in English.) Tomorrow I will call you, is future tense. [Tomorrow I call you is not correct.]
    B) I am calling you right now, is present continuous. I will be calling you tomorrow, is future continuous. [Tomorrow I am calling you is not correct.]
    C) Tomorrow I am going to call you, is correct as written.

    Note: Personally, I would put 'tomorrow' at the end of each of the sentences which I wrote above. It seems to me that the sentence flows better that way...

    cisarro

    Senior Member

    Chilean spanish

    • Jun 8, 2011
    • #3

    Hi kayokid:

    Maybe I am wrong about some terms or I didn't explain so well I call/I am calling/I am going to call (5) Found these examples in a online course, but i don't understand the difference (I will copy the text):

    Se puede utilizar el "present simple" para describir una acción en el futuro que está totalmente planeada:
    Tomorrow I fly to Madrid. (Mañana vuelo a Madrid)

    También se utiliza el "present continuous" para expresar una acción que se va a desarrollar en un futuro cercano y que también está planeada.
    Tonight I am having a party. (Esta noche voy a tener una fiesta)

    Otra fórmula de expresar el futuro en inglés es con la forma "to be going + infinitivo".
    I am going to buy a house. (Yo me voy a comprar una casa)

    Thanks for your help I call/I am calling/I am going to call (6)

    kayokid

    Senior Member

    Chicago

    English, USA

    • Jun 8, 2011
    • #4

    Quote:
    Se puede utilizar el "present simple" para describir una acción en el futuro que está totalmente planeada:
    Tomorrow I fly to Madrid. (Mañana vuelo a Madrid)This is correct and sounds OK. I don't have an explanation as to why it doesn't work or sound right with 'call' in your sentence.

    También se utiliza el "present continuous" para expresar una acción que se va a desarrollar en un futuro cercano y que también está planeada.
    Tonight I am having a party. (Esta noche voy a tener una fiesta)This is correct and is, essentially, the same as: Tonight I am going to have a party. Again, I can not explain why it doesn't work with the verb 'to call'.

    Otra fórmula de expresar el futuro en inglés es con la forma "to be going + infinitivo".
    I am going to buy a house. (Yo me voy a comprar una casa)Maybe someone else has a rule as to which verbs this works with or a grammatical reason, at least. Sorry...

    E

    el_ochito

    Senior Member

    Caracas - Venezuela

    Spanish - Venezuelan

    • Jun 8, 2011
    • #5

    Cisarro, voy con tus dos primeros que son los más complicados.

    El presente simple puedes utilizarlo para expresar acciones futuras, de la misma manera que lo haces en español. Lo que haces mentalmente es transportarte tú al futuro (digamos al día de mañana), y relatar las acciones como si fueran en presentes. Es usual emplearlo para planificación. Por ejemplo, si me preguntan: Oye, qué harás mañana?/Qué vas a hacer mañana?/ Qué haces mañana?

    Yo podría responder:

    Veamos, mañana es jueves, así que me levanto a las 6, me ducho, me visto, me desayuno y me voy a trabajar.

    Let's see, tomorrow is thursday, so I get up at 6, shower, get dressed, have breakfast and go to work.

    La segunda es similar, aunque esa sí no tiene paralelo tan claro en español. El present continuous puede usarse para expresar acciones que no están ocurriendo ahora, sino ocurrirán en el futuro relativamente próximo. La idea mental es la misma, te transportas a ese momento y relatas lo que estarás haciendo o lo que estará ocurriendo en ese momento como si estuvieras allí:

    I'm having a party tonight.
    I'm sleeping late tomorrow. Don't call me.
    My mother is travelling to Europe this Christmas.

    C

    Cayenarama

    Senior Member

    Catalonia

    English-England

    • Jun 9, 2011
    • #6

    cisarro said:

    Hello folks!

    I'm confused about some future tenses which use the present tense. For example:

    A) Tomorrow i call you (present simple)
    B) Tomorrow i am calling you (present continuous)
    C) Tomorrow i am going to call you (to be going + infinitive)

    I know that these sentences have different shades but I can't distinguish the differences I call/I am calling/I am going to call (8)

    Hi Cisarro,
    This is a common query from students. Fortunately it's not as difficult as it looks.
    A) Tomorrow I call you (present simple)
    The present tense is used for timetables, schedules, diaries and agendas:

    The plane arrives at 7.30 in the morning.
    The film starts at eight.
    I meet the representative at the airport.

    C) Tomorrow I am going to call you (to be going to + infinitive)We use this structure for intentions and plans:

    "I'm just going to take hand luggage on the flight tomorrow."

    "We're going to be away next weekend."

    B) Tomorrow I am calling you (present continuous)

    This is very similar to (C) but the intentions or plans are stronger. Perhaps some step has been taken or it's simply less flexible:

    "We're flying from Madrid on Friday at 8.30 in the morning." (The tickets have already been bought etc)

    "I'm phoning you tomorrow whether you're ready or not."

    Another possibility is the form 'will' + infinitive. We use this form to talk about new spontaneous ideas in the future:

    "I don't know how long it will take me to finish the report."
    "That's all right. I'll call you in the afternoon."

    "Could you give me Dave's number please?"
    "I don't have it on me. I'll text it to you later"

    'Tomorrow' can go at the beginning or at the end. I also think it sounds better at the end here.

    Last edited:

    C

    Cayenarama

    Senior Member

    Catalonia

    English-England

    • Jun 9, 2011
    • #7

    cisarro said:

    Hi kayokid:

    Maybe I am wrong about some terms or I didn't explain so well I call/I am calling/I am going to call (9) Found these examples in an online course, but I don't understand the difference (I will copy the text):
    Se puede utilizar el "present simple" para describir una acción en el futuro que está totalmente planeada:
    Tomorrow I fly to Madrid. (Mañana vuelo a Madrid)

    También se utiliza el "present continuous" para expresar una acción que se va a desarrollar en un futuro cercano y que también está planeada.
    Tonight I am having a party. (Esta noche voy a tener una fiesta)

    Otra fórmula de expresar el futuro en inglés es con la forma "to be going + infinitivo".
    I am going to buy a house. (Yo me voy a comprar una casa)

    Thanks for your help I call/I am calling/I am going to call (10)

    Acabo de mirar los consejos que ofrecen en el curso 'online'. La verdad es que no parecen tener mucha idea del tema y por eso lo explican mal y de una manera que al final te va a liar más. Mejor invertir en otro método sinceramente.

    cisarro

    Senior Member

    Chilean spanish

    • Jun 9, 2011
    • #8

    Hey! thanks for the answers, I'm taking notes.

    Cayenarama: sí, mientras más avanzo en las lecciones me doy cuenta lo mucho que se están liando con las explicaciones hahahaha I call/I am calling/I am going to call (12)

    ribran

    Senior Member

    Washington, DC

    English - American

    • Jun 9, 2011
    • #9

    pubman said:

    Edit; I suppose it could work with phrasal verbs. Tomorrow I break up early (from school)

    What does this sentence mean? I call/I am calling/I am going to call (14)

    I'm guessing it means, "Tomorrow I get out of school early," or, "Tomorrow my school lets out early."

    C

    Cayenarama

    Senior Member

    Catalonia

    English-England

    • Jun 9, 2011
    • #10

    cisarro said:

    Hey! thanks for the answers, I'm taking notes.

    Cayenarama: sí, mientras más avanzo en las lecciones me doy cuenta lo mucho que se están liando con las explicaciones hahahaha I call/I am calling/I am going to call (15)

    Sí ¿verdad? Pero por otro lado parece bastante divertido. Me gustaría 'consultarlo',yo también. La falta de base académica hace que desprenda un aire simpático y desenfadado.

    Se puede utilizar el "present simple" para describir una acción en el futuro que está totalmente planeada: O sea totalmente planeado, no eso de que a lo mejor empezamos con una idea y luego ¡a ver qué pasa!
    Tomorrow I fly to Madrid. (Mañana vuelo a Madrid)
    Además, me han dicho que si llego tarde al aeropuerto el avión no me espera.

    También se utiliza el "present continuous" para expresar una acción que se va a desarrollar en un futuro cercano y que también está planeada.
    Tonight I am having a party. (Esta noche voy a tener una fiesta)
    Bueno así es el plan, a no ser que me encuentre con algún colega antes y la liamos por ahí.

    Otra fórmula de expresar el futuro en inglés es con la forma "to be going + infinitivo".
    I am going to buy a house. (Yo me voy a comprar una casa) ¡Y mira que chulo!

    inib

    Senior Member

    La Rioja, Spain

    British English

    • Jun 9, 2011
    • #11

    Hi, ribran.
    "Tomorow I break up" means (in Br E) Tomorrow my holidays start for quite a few days. So yes, tomorrow school ends

    for a while

    . We wouldn't say "we break up tomorrow" if there were only one day off.

    EDIT: Please forgive me for only answering ribran's query, instead of dealing with the subjectof the OP. But I think the latter has been correctly dealt with.

    Last edited:

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