Future tense: A form for a later time, often aller plus infinitive.

Going places and future plans

The verb aller means 'to go': je vais, tu vas, il va, nous allons, vous allez, ils vont. It is also very common in directions: Vous allez à droite, Nous allons à la gare.

French also uses aller + infinitive for the near future, very often in speech: Je vais acheter deux billets, Nous allons suivre Félix. This usually means 'going to do something'.

For maps and directions, French often combines aller with place expressions: aller tout droit, aller à gauche, aller au coin, aller jusqu'à la gare.

At A1 level, learn very useful chunks for movement: allez tout droit, tournez à gauche, nous allons partir. Some direction commands like tournez are fixed phrases you can use even before learning every detail.

• Demain, nous allons au lac.Tomorrow, we are going to the lake.

• Je vais acheter deux billets.I am going to buy two tickets.

• Vous allez à gauche, puis tout droit.You go left, then straight on.

• Thomas va prendre son plan B.Thomas is going to take his plan B.

• Lukas va à la gare à pied.Lukas is going to the station on foot.

• Lena va suivre Félix dans le parc.Lena is going to follow Félix in the park.

• Nous allons chez Mme Martin après le travail.We are going to Mrs Martin's place after work.

• Zoé va dessiner une carte.Zoé is going to draw a map.