GRAMMAR SNACK Future Time Clauses 1. You can use the future tense after “time words” like “when” or “before”. □ □ □ True False What’s a time word? 2. Choose the best word to complete the sentences. Focus on the relationship between the two clauses to help you. a. Take an umbrella in case / unless it rains. b. Before / After the class ends, I’m going to go into town. c. We aren’t going to buy a new car until / in case we get paid next month. d. I promised my Mum that I will call her when / as soon as I get my exam results. I won’t wait a second. e. I’m not going to the party unless / if you go. f. We’re going to have a picnic if / unless the weather is sunny. g. I am going to go for a run until / before dinner. 3. Rewrite the sentence/sentence to include the word in brackets. You might need to change the form of some of the words to make the sentence grammatically correct. a. I will only go to the party if you go. (unless) ______________________________________________________________________________ b. I take Vitamin C every day so I will be protected if I have a cold. (in case) ______________________________________________________________________________ c. I’m going to see John. I’ll give him the CD then. (when) ______________________________________________________________________________ d. I will have dinner. But first I will finish my homework. (before) ______________________________________________________________________________ e. Let’s take an earlier bus. It’s possible there will be a lot of traffic. (in case) ______________________________________________________________________________ f. When John apologizes to me, I will speak to him again. (until) ______________________________________________________________________________ g. I’ll look for a job after I’ve rented a flat. (before) ______________________________________________________________________________ h. People have to start using less petrol, or it will run out within a century. (if) ______________________________________________________________________________ © 2017 My IELTS Classroom ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ANSWERS & COMMENTS 1. False This is one of the strange things about English. Even though we are talking about the future, we use a present tense after time words. 2. a. Take an umbrella in case it rains. The umbrella is a precaution so it is the best choice. The other means you take an umbrella every day except when it rains (which is crazy!) b. After the class ends, I’m going to go into town. “After” is the correct choice (but not if you are a bad student!). c. We aren’t going to buy a new car until we get paid next month. d. I promised my Mum that I will call her as soon as I get my exam results. I won’t wait a second. “as soon as” means “immediately after, so it is the best choice in this sentence. e. I’m not going to the party unless you go. Of course, if you don’t like the person, you could use “if”! f. We’re going to have a picnic if the weather is sunny. g. I am going to go for a run before dinner. If you use “until” it means that you will start running now and won’t stop until dinner starts. I don’t think this is likely. I think you will go for a run at some point before dinner. 3. a. I won’t go to the party unless you go. b. I take Vitamin C every day in case I have a cold. c. When I see John, I’ll give him the CD. Did you use the future tense after “when”? No? Good, good, good. Have a biscuit. d. Before I eat dinner, I will finish my homework. Don’t use the future after “before”. e. Let’s take an earlier train in case there is a lot of traffic. Don’t use the future after “in case”. f. I won’t speak to John again until he apologizes to me. g. I’ll rent a flat before I look for a job. Make sure that you have the present and future tenses in the correct place!!!! h. If people don’t start using less petrol, it will run out within a century OR If people don’t start using less petrol, it will have run out within a century © 2017 My IELTS Classroom ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
