Level 2 — Elementary (CEFR: A2)
Unit 5 — Verb Group 1: -AR Verbs
Lesson 13 — Simple Future of -AR Verbs
Lesson Overview
Level: 2 — Elementary Unit: 5 — Verb Group 1: -AR Verbs Lesson: 13 of 14 Estimated Time: 60 minutes
What this lesson covers:
- The simple future tense: formation and pronunciation
- Why the simple future uses the full infinitive as the stem (unique among Spanish tenses)
- The six simple future endings (same for all three verb groups)
- Simple future vs. near future: when each is used
- Ministry contexts for the simple future: promises, prophecy, formal declarations
- The ministry promise drill
The Simple Future: Formation
The simple future is unique in Spanish because it is formed from the full infinitive, not from the stem. The endings are attached directly to the infinitive:
| Pronoun | Ending | hablar |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -é | hablaré |
| tú | -ás | hablarás |
| él / ella / usted | -á | hablará |
| nosotros | -emos | hablaremos |
| vosotros | -éis | hablaréis |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | -án | hablarán |
Latin American five-form paradigm: hablaré — hablarás — hablará — hablaremos — hablarán
The infinitive as stem: Unlike every other tense, the simple future does not remove the -ar ending first. The full word hablar remains, and the endings attach to the final r: hablar + é = hablaré.
This means the simple future applies equally to all three verb groups with the same endings — a rare simplification in Spanish grammar. -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs all form the simple future the same way:
hablar → hablaré creer → creeré vivir → viviré
No group distinctions. No stem changes in the simple future. Only a small set of verbs with irregular futures (infinitive changes — covered in Level 3).
Accent Marks in the Simple Future
Every form of the simple future except nosotros carries a written accent mark:
hablaré — hablarás — hablará — hablaremos — hablarán
The absence of an accent mark on hablaremos is because the stress falls naturally on the penultimate syllable (the rule for words ending in -os with no accent mark needed). All other forms need the accent because the stress falls on the final syllable — the ending.
For oral production: stress must fall on the final syllable in all accented forms. hablaRÉ, hablaRÁS, hablaRÁ, hablaRÁN. This final-syllable stress pattern distinguishes simple future forms from present tense forms in incoming speech.
Simple Future Ministry Verbs
orar: oraré — orarás — orará — oraremos — orarán Oraré por usted cada día. — I will pray for you every day. El Señor orará por nosotros — Cristo intercede. — Christ will intercede for us.
predicar: predicaré — predicarás — predicará — predicaremos — predicarán Predicaré con valentía. — I will preach with boldness. Dios abrirá puertas y predicaremos el evangelio. — God will open doors and we will preach the gospel.
enseñar: enseñaré — enseñarás — enseñará — enseñaremos — enseñarán El Espíritu Santo les enseñará todo. — The Holy Spirit will teach them everything. Enseñaremos a los nuevos creyentes los fundamentos de la fe. — We will teach new believers the foundations of the faith.
adorar: adoraré — adorarás — adorará — adoraremos — adorarán Le adoraremos por la eternidad. — We will worship him for eternity. Un día, toda rodilla se doblará y toda lengua adorará. — One day, every knee will bow and every tongue will worship.
llegar: llegaré — llegarás — llegará — llegaremos — llegarán Los misioneros llegarán el jueves. — The missionaries will arrive Thursday. El evangelio llegará hasta los confines de la tierra. — The gospel will reach to the ends of the earth.
proclamar: proclamaré — proclamarás — proclamará — proclamaremos — proclamarán Proclamaremos a Cristo hasta que Él venga. — We will proclaim Christ until He comes. Dios proclamará su justicia desde los cielos. — God will proclaim his justice from the heavens.
Simple Future vs. Near Future
Both forms express future action. The distinction in spoken Latin American Spanish:
Near future (ir + a + infinitive): Plans, intentions, imminent actions, ordinary future in conversation
- Voy a predicar esta noche. — I’m going to preach tonight. (plan, imminent)
- Vamos a orar. — We’re going to pray. (imminent, cohortative)
Simple future: More formal or written register; more distant future; strong declarations, promises, and prophetic statements
- Predicaré el evangelio mientras tenga aliento. — I will preach the gospel as long as I have breath. (strong personal commitment)
- El Señor reinará por siempre. — The Lord will reign forever. (theological declaration)
- Llegarán tiempos difíciles. — Difficult times will come. (somewhat distant/formal prediction)
In ministry practice: The simple future is most commonly encountered in:
- Biblical prophecy quotations (Derramaré mi Espíritu… — I will pour out my Spirit…)
- Strong personal ministry commitments (Predicaré con valentía)
- Eschatological declarations (Cristo volverá)
- Formal promises and covenants
The near future handles most ordinary conversation about plans. The interpreter needs both, but will encounter the near future more often in spontaneous speech.
Ministry Promise Drill
This is the core drill from the curriculum. Practice making and interpreting ministry commitments in the simple future.
Part 1 — Personal commitments: Predicaré con valentía. — I will preach with boldness. Oraré cada día. — I will pray every day. Enseñaré fielmente la Palabra. — I will faithfully teach the Word. Adoraré al Señor en todo tiempo. — I will worship the Lord at all times. Compartiré mi testimonio con quien quiera escuchar. — I will share my testimony with whoever wants to hear.
Part 2 — Divine promises (God as subject): Dios obrará en este lugar. — God will work in this place. El Señor sanará a los enfermos. — The Lord will heal the sick. Su Espíritu llegará con poder. — His Spirit will come with power. Dios enviará más obreros a la mies. — God will send more workers into the harvest. Llegarán más misioneros. — More missionaries will come.
Part 3 — Interpretation practice: A partner gives the English. You produce the Spanish in the simple future — not the near future.
“I will not be silent.” → No callaré. “God will provide.” → Dios proveerá. “We will proclaim Christ.” → Proclamaremos a Cristo. “The church will grow.” → La iglesia crecerá. “He will return.” → Volverá.
Target: Under 4 seconds per response. The simple future endings must be as automatic as the present tense endings.
Biblical Simple Future: Prophecy and Quotation
The simple future appears constantly in preaching when preachers quote Old Testament prophecy or make eschatological declarations. These are among the most important sentences in the interpreter’s active vocabulary:
“Derramaré mi Espíritu sobre toda carne.” — I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. (Joel 2:28) “El que comenzó la buena obra la terminará.” — He who began the good work will complete it. (Philippians 1:6) “Toda rodilla se doblará y toda lengua confesará.” — Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess. (Philippians 2:10–11) “Cristo volverá de la misma manera que le visteis ir.” — Christ will return in the same way you saw him go. (Acts 1:11) “El que cree en mí, aunque muera, vivirá.” — He who believes in me, though he dies, will live. (John 11:25)
The interpreter who hears one of these prophetic declarations in English must be able to produce the Spanish future forms reflexively — the theological moment of a service depends on it.
Practice Exercises
Exercise 1 — Simple Future Production
Conjugate each verb in the simple future (all 5 Latin American forms):
orar — predicar — enseñar — adorar — proclamar — entregar — llegar
Exercise 2 — Near Future vs. Simple Future
Choose the more natural form for each context. Explain.
- The pastor is making an imminent announcement: “We are going to begin in five minutes.”
- A preacher is making a strong theological declaration: “The Lord will reign forever.”
- An evangelist is making a lifetime personal commitment: “I will preach until I die.”
- You are telling someone what will happen in the next few minutes: “The missionary is going to pray for you.”
- A prophecy quotation from Joel: “I will pour out my Spirit.”
Exercise 3 — Ministry Promise Drill
Complete all three parts of the ministry promise drill above. Time Part 3 — target under 4 seconds per response.
Exercise 4 — Prophecy Quotation Production
Without looking, produce these four prophecy future-tense phrases from memory:
- “I will pour out my Spirit” → ___
- “Every knee will bow” → ___
- “God will complete the good work” → ___
- “Christ will return” → ___
Key Takeaways for This Lesson
Before moving to Lesson 14:
- Simple future = full infinitive + endings: -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -án
- All three verb groups use the same endings — no group distinction in the simple future
- The simple future appears in strong declarations, biblical prophecy, formal promises, and eschatological statements
- The near future is more common in ordinary spoken Spanish; the simple future carries more weight and formality
- Know the biblical prophetic phrases in the simple future — they appear frequently in preaching
Daily Practice
Simple future drill:
Add the simple future to your daily drill rotation. Run five ministry verbs in simple future form, targeting under 30 seconds for all five. Then produce one prophecy or promise sentence per day:
El Señor cumplirá su promesa. Predicaremos el evangelio hasta el fin. Dios sanará este lugar.