Study guide
7.1 Expressing the Future: Ir a + Inf, Present & Simple Future
DELE A2 — Spanish Language Diploma Elementary
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1 Chapter 1: Exam Overview, Format & Scoring Structure
1.1 DELE A2 Identity, Purpose & Nationality Requirements 1.2 Four Pruebas & Official Test Administration 1.3 Scoring System: The 30/50 Group Rules & Pass Criteria
2 Chapter 2: Prueba 1 — Reading Comprehension Tasks & Strategies
2.1 Reading Tarea 1: Personal Correspondence & Informational Texts 2.2 Reading Tarea 2: Notices, Bulletins & Short Announcements 2.3 Reading Tarea 3: Matching Statements to Thematic Texts 2.4 Reading Tarea 4: Long Narrative Text & Changes of Topic
3 Chapter 3: Prueba 2 — Listening Comprehension Tasks & Auditory Techniques
3.1 Listening Tarea 1: Six Short Conversations with Picture Options 3.2 Listening Tarea 2: Radio News, Ads & Programme Extracts 3.3 Listening Tarea 3: One Conversation – Man, Woman or Neither 3.4 Listening Tarea 4: Seven Messages Matched to Ten Statements
4 Chapter 4: Prueba 3 — Written Expression & Interaction
4.1 Writing Tarea 1: Replying to a Personal Message (60–70 Words) 4.2 Writing Tarea 2: Option A (Personal Life) or Option B (Photos/Data) 4.3 The Official Writing Scale, Cohesion & Common Errors
5 Chapter 5: Prueba 4 — Oral Expression & Interaction
5.1 Oral Test Structure, 12-Minute Preparation & Official Scales 5.2 Oral Tarea 1: Prepared Presentation on a Personal Topic 5.3 Oral Tarea 2: Describing a Photograph (Monologue) 5.4 Oral Tarea 3: Simulated Conversation Linked to the Photo
6 Chapter 6: Essential A2 Grammar — Verb Systems & Tenses
6.1 Present Indicative Regulars, Stem-Changers & Irregulars 6.2 Reflexive Verbs & Verbs of Preference (Gustar, Encantar, Doler) 6.3 The Past Tenses: Pretérito Perfecto vs. Pretérito Indefinido 6.4 Pretérito Imperfecto & The Three-Way Past Tense Contrast
7 Chapter 7: Essential A2 Grammar — Syntax, Periphrases & Operators
7.1 Expressing the Future: Ir a + Inf, Present & Simple Future 7.2 Verbal Periphrases of Obligation, Ability & Desire 7.3 Direct & Indirect Object Pronouns and Position Rules 7.4 Affirmative Imperative: Tú & Usted Commands
8 Chapter 8: Foundational Contrasts & Sentence Building
8.1 Ser vs. Estar: Attributes, Locations, States & Gerunds 8.2 Por vs. Para: Causes, Destinations, Deadlines & Exchanges 8.3 Comparatives, Superlatives, Quantifiers & Negatives 8.4 The Noun Phrase: Gender, Articles, Demonstratives, Possessives & Relatives
9 Chapter 9: Thematic Vocabulary — Daily Life, Housing & Surroundings
9.1 Personal Identity, Physical Description & Family Relations 9.2 Home, Housing Types, Furniture & Household Tasks 9.3 City Navigation, Places in Town & Giving Directions
10 Chapter 10: Thematic Vocabulary — Services, Transactions & Health
10.1 Food, Dining Out, Supermarket Shopping & Ordering 10.2 Shopping for Clothes, Sizes, Prices & Commercial Transactions 10.3 Health, Body Parts, Illnesses & Pharmacy Visits 10.4 Work, Professions, Workplace Routines & Job Applications 10.5 Studies, Courses, Phones & Everyday Services
11 Chapter 11: Thematic Vocabulary — Leisure, Travel & Environment
11.1 Free Time, Hobbies, Sports & Entertainment 11.2 Travel, Accommodations, Transport Modes & Bookings 11.3 Weather, Climate, Seasons & Natural Environment
12 Chapter 12: Exam Day Strategy, Time Management & Final Review
12.1 Timing, Answer Sheets & Pacing on Exam Day 12.2 Identifying Distractors, False Friends & Traps 12.3 6-Week Structured Study Plan & High-Yield Checklist
7.1 Expressing the Future: Ir a + Inf, Present & Simple Future
Key Takeaways Explain This Topic AI
Spanish provides three distinct grammatical avenues for expressing future events at the A2 level: the periphrastic future (ir a + infinitivo), the Present Indicative with temporal markers, and the morphological Simple Future (futuro simple).
The periphrasis ir a + infinitivo serves as the primary conversational structure for immediate intentions, planned personal actions, and imminent occurrences deduced from observable present evidence.
The Present Indicative paired with specific future time markers expresses scheduled commitments, official timetables, and fixed arrangements perceived as virtually realized.
The Simple Future is formed by appending uniform suffixes (-é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án) directly to the entire infinitive stem across all three regular verb conjugations (-ar, -er, -ir).
Key irregular verbs modify their radical root into distinctive consonantal stems (tendr-, saldr-, pondr-, vendr-, podr-, sabr-, har-, dir-) before adding future endings, and are frequently encountered in formal announcements, weather forecasts, and hypotheses.
Last updated: September 2026
Quick Summary: Expressing future time on the DELE A2 examination does not rely on a single verb tense. Spanish uses three complementary grammatical structures depending on conversational register, degree of planning, and communicative immediacy: the periphrastic future ( ir a + infinitivo ) for personal plans and evidence-based forecasts, the Present Indicative with future markers for scheduled calendar commitments, and the Simple Future ( futuro simple ) for formal announcements, weather bulletins, and predictions.
1. The Tripartite System of Expressing Future Time in Spanish
At the A2 level, candidates often assume that the morphological Simple Future ( hablaré, comeré ) is the default translation for English "will." In contemporary spoken Spanish, however, the periphrastic future ( voy a hablar ) accounts for the overwhelming majority of conversational future references. Choosing the right form helps in both Prueba 3 (Written Expression) and Prueba 4 (Oral Interaction); the official band-3 descriptors mention control of the future.
Mechanism Grammatical Formula Primary Communicative Function Register & Frequency
Periphrastic Future ir (present) + a + infinitive Personal plans, firm intentions, imminent events based on present sensory evidence Highly frequent in spoken and informal written Spanish
Present Indicative Present verb + future temporal marker Scheduled timetables, fixed public programs, definite calendar appointments Universal in both formal and informal registers
Simple Future Infinitive + -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án Formal written announcements, institutional schedules, weather forecasts, conjectures Formal written texts, media broadcasts, institutional notices
2. The Periphrastic Future ( Ir a + Infinitivo )
The periphrastic future ( futuro perifrástico ) is the fundamental syntactic operator for talking about the future in DELE A2. It is constructed using a three-part verbal formula: [ir in present indicative] + a + [verbo en infinitivo] \text{[ir in present indicative]} + \text{a} + \text{[verbo en infinitivo]} [ir in present indicative] + a + [verbo en infinitivo]
Conjugation Matrix of the Auxiliary Verb Ir
Because ir is a radical irregular verb, candidates must master its present indicative forms without hesitation:
Subject Pronoun Auxiliary ir Preposition Non-Finite Verb Complete Utterance
yo voy a viajar Voy a viajar a Granada el próximo fin de semana.
tú vas a comer ¿Qué vas a comer hoy al mediodía?
él / ella / usted va a comprar Marta va a comprar los billetes de tren.
nosotros / nosotras vamos a estudiar Vamos a estudiar juntos en la biblioteca central.
vosotros / vosotras vais a salir ¿A qué hora vais a salir de casa?
ellos / ellas / ustedes van a participar Los estudiantes van a participar en el coloquio.
Communicative Functions on DELE A2
Personal Intentions and Pre-Meditated Plans (Prueba 4 Tarea 1): When describing personal projects or future ambitions during the oral monologue, use ir a + infinitivo to convey that a decision has already been formulated:
Este verano voy a hacer un curso intensivo de diseño gráfico en Madrid.
Mis amigos y yo vamos a alquilar un apartamento cerca de la playa.
Immediate Actions in Conversational Turn-Taking (Prueba 4 Tarea 3): In interactive role-plays (such as shopping, booking hotel rooms, or resolving customer service issues), ir a signals an immediate forthcoming action:
Un momento, por favor, voy a consultar la disponibilidad en el ordenador.
Ahora mismo voy a llamar al encargado de la tienda.
Foreseeable Events Deduced from Observable Present Evidence: When current visual or situational evidence indicates that something is inevitable, Spanish mandates ir a + infinitivo rather than the Simple Future:
¡Mira esas nubes tan oscuras! Va a llover en cualquier momento.
Cuidado con ese escalón, te vas a caer .
Caution
The Missing Preposition Error: A pervasive error among English-speaking candidates is omitting the preposition a (producing erroneous forms like *voy comer or *vamos salir ). The linking particle a is syntactically mandatory. Writing or uttering voy a comer and vamos a salir is essential for accurate A2 writing and speaking.
3. Present Indicative with Future Value ( Presente con Valor de Futuro )
In Spanish syntax, the Present Indicative can project into future time whenever the utterance contains an explicit temporal marker ( marcador temporal de futuro ). This construction expresses events that are fixed, scheduled, or considered by the speaker as virtually certain and unchangeable.
Required Syntactic Conditions
Unlike ir a + infinitivo , which contains future meaning within its own auxiliary verb, the Present Indicative is semantically present. To project forward, it must be anchored by an explicit adverb or prepositional phrase indicating future time:
Without marker (Ambiguous / Habitual): Salgo con mis compañeros. (I go out / am going out with my colleagues — present or habitual routine).
With marker (Definite Future Plan): * El viernes por la noche salgo con mis compañeros.* (I am going out with my colleagues this Friday night — confirmed arrangement).
Key Communicative Applications
Official Schedules and Public Transportation (Prueba 1 Tareas 2 y 3):
El tren para Sevilla sale mañana a las 08:30 de la estación de Atocha.
El museo abre sus puertas el próximo lunes a las diez.
Firm Interpersonal Commitments:
Esta tarde te llamo sin falta y concretamos los detalles de la cena.
Mañana empiezo mi nuevo trabajo en el centro comercial.
4. The Simple Future ( Futuro Simple o Imperfecto )
The Simple Future ( futuro simple ) is a synthetic verbal tense where person and number inflections are fused directly onto the verb root. At the A2 level, candidates are expected to recognize this tense in written notices and reading passages, and to use it in written messages, promises and forecasts.
Regular Conjugation Mechanics
A unique morphological advantage of the Simple Future is that all three conjugations (-ar, -er, -ir) utilize the exact same inflectional endings . Furthermore, these endings are attached directly to the entire infinitive of the verb, rather than to a truncated root:
- Person Ending 1st Conj. ( -ar ): hablar 2nd Conj. ( -er ): comer 3rd Conj. ( -ir ): vivir
- yo -é hablar é comer é vivir é
- tú -ás hablar ás comer ás vivir ás
- él / ella / usted -á hablar á comer á vivir á
- nosotros / nosotras -emos hablar emos comer emos vivir emos
- vosotros / vosotras -éis hablar éis comer éis vivir éis
- ellos / ellas / ustedes -án hablar án comer án vivir án
Important
Graphic Accent Marks: Five out of the six inflections carry an obligatory written accent ( tilde ): -é, -ás, -á, -éis, -án . Only the first-person plural form -emos lacks a graphic accent because it is a paroxytone word ( palabra llana ) ending in the consonant -s .
High-Frequency Irregular Stems
Eleven high-frequency verbs modify their infinitive base before taking the standard future endings. These verbs fall into three phonological patterns:
Category A: Insertion of -d- (Vowel Replaced by Consonant)
- Infinitive Meaning Irregular Future Stem 1st Person Singular ( yo ) 1st Person Plural ( nosotros )
- tener to have tendr- tendr é tendr emos
- salir to go out / leave saldr- saldr é saldr emos
- poner to put / place pondr- pondr é pondr emos
- venir to come vendr- vendr é vendr emos
- valer to be worth valdr- valdr é valdr emos
- Category B: Syncope of Infinitive Vowel (Vowel Dropped)
- Infinitive Meaning Irregular Future Stem 1st Person Singular ( yo ) 3rd Person Singular ( él/ella )
- poder to be able / can podr- podr é podr á
- saber to know facts sabr- sabr é sabr á
- haber auxiliary / existence habr- habr é habrá ( there will be )
- querer to want / wish querr- querr é querr á
- Category C: Radical Stem Contraction
- Infinitive Meaning Irregular Future Stem 1st Person Singular ( yo ) 3rd Person Plural ( ellos/ellas )
- hacer to do / make har- har é har án
decir to say / tell dir- dir é dir án Irregular Stem Summary Map:
- d-insertion: tener->tendr- | salir->saldr- | poner->pondr- | venir->vendr-
- vowel syncope: poder->podr- | saber->sabr- | haber->habr- | querer->querr-
- contraction: hacer->har- | decir->dir-
- All attach standard endings: -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án
- Communicative Applications of the Simple Future on DELE A2
Weather Forecasts in Listening Tasks (Prueba 2):
Mañana subirán las temperaturas en toda la costa mediterránea y lloverá en el norte.
Formal Notices and Official Program Announcements (Prueba 1):
El acto de inauguración tendrá lugar en el salón de actos a las once de la mañana.
Los participantes recibirán un diploma de asistencia al finalizar las jornadas.
Promises in Letters and Emails (Prueba 3):
Le escribiré la próxima semana para confirmar los detalles de la reserva.
Le agradeceré su pronta respuesta.
Hypothesis and Probability in the Present (Advanced A2 Nuance):
—¿Dónde está Carlos? —No sé, estará en su despacho. (Where is Carlos? — I don't know, he's probably in his office.)
5. Temporal Markers of Future Time
To establish temporal cohesion in written essays and oral descriptions, candidates must integrate varied temporal locutions:
Temporal Marker Meaning in English Practical Contextual Example
mañana tomorrow Mañana por la mañana voy a visitar el museo Reina Sofía.
pasado mañana the day after tomorrow Pasado mañana tenemos la última clase del curso.
la semana que viene / la próxima semana next week La semana que viene saldré de viaje de negocios.
el mes que viene / el próximo mes next month El próximo mes vamos a cambiar de piso.
este fin de semana this weekend Este fin de semana voy a descansar en casa.
dentro de [tiempo] in / within [time] El tren saldrá dentro de quince minutos.
el año que viene / el próximo año next year El año que viene me gustaría viajar a Colombia.
pronto / más tarde soon / later Pronto sabremos los resultados de la prueba escrita.
6. Common DELE A2 Candidate Pitfalls & Examiner Advice
Pitfall 1: Overusing Simple Future in Informal Spoken Tasks: In Prueba 4, candidates who say Mañana comeré con mis amigos sound unnaturally stiff and bookish. Spanish natives overwhelmingly use Mañana voy a comer con mis amigos or Mañana como con mis amigos . Reserve synthetic future forms in speech for weather, hypotheses, or formal pledges.
Pitfall 2: Confusing ir a + infinitivo with ir a + sustantivo de lugar : When going to a place, the verb is directional ( Voy a la biblioteca ). When planning an activity, the verb is an auxiliary followed by an infinitive ( Voy a leer en la biblioteca ). Do not duplicate or confuse them: Voy a ir al cine is completely correct and natural.
Pitfall 3: Inventing Regular Future Stems for Irregulars: Forms like *haceré , *poneré , *teneré , and *deciré are severe morphological errors that degrade grammatical accuracy scores in Prueba 3. Always apply the contracted stems: haré , pondré , tendré , diré .
Pitfall 4: Neglecting Written Accents on Future Endings: Omitting the accent mark on estudiará creates confusion with other verbal paradigms (such as subjunctive forms in higher levels). Ensure that -é, -ás, -á, -éis, -án are clearly accented in written compositions.