4.10. Le passé récent et le futur proche

Situating Events in the Recent Past and Near Future

4.10.1. The Main Idea

French has two useful beginner structures for talking about time:

venir de + infinitive	to have just done something
aller + infinitive	to be going to do something

Use venir de + infinitive for the recent past. Use aller + infinitive for the near future.

4.10.2. Recent Past: Venir de + Infinitive

Use venir de + infinitive to say someone has just done something.

Je viens d’étudier.	I just studied.
Tu viens de manger.	You just ate.
Il vient de partir.	He just left.
Elle vient de travailler.	She just worked.
Nous venons de parler français.	We just spoke French.
Vous venez de regarder un film.	You just watched a movie.
Ils viennent de faire les devoirs.	They just did the homework.

Before a vowel sound, de becomes d’.

de + étudier	d’étudier
de + écouter	d’écouter

4.10.3. Near Future: Aller + Infinitive

Use aller + infinitive to say someone is going to do something.

Je vais étudier.	I am going to study.
Tu vas manger.	You are going to eat.
Il va partir.	He is going to leave.
Elle va travailler.	She is going to work.
Nous allons parler français.	We are going to speak French.
Vous allez regarder un film.	You are going to watch a movie.
Ils vont faire les devoirs.	They are going to do the homework.

4.10.4. Comparing the Two Structures

Je viens d’étudier.	I just studied.
Je vais étudier.	I am going to study.
Tu viens de manger.	You just ate.
Tu vas manger.	You are going to eat.
Il vient de partir.	He just left.
Il va partir.	He is going to leave.

The first verb changes for the subject.

The second verb stays in the infinitive form.

4.10.5. Time Expressions

maintenant	now
aujourd’hui	today
demain	tomorrow
ce soir	this evening / tonight
cet après-midi	this afternoon
ce week-end	this weekend
bientôt	soon
tout à l’heure	later / earlier today
à plus tard	see you later

4.10.6. Examples with Time Expressions

Je vais étudier ce soir.	I am going to study tonight.
Tu vas travailler demain ?	Are you going to work tomorrow?
Il va partir bientôt.	He is going to leave soon.
Elle va regarder un film ce week-end.	She is going to watch a movie this weekend.
Je viens de manger.	I just ate.
Nous venons de faire une pause.	We just took a break.

4.10.7. Questions

Tu viens de manger ?	Did you just eat?
Vous venez de travailler ?	Did you just work? formal or plural
Tu vas étudier ce soir ?	Are you going to study tonight?
Vous allez partir bientôt ?	Are you going to leave soon? formal or plural

4.10.8. Negative Sentences

Place ne… pas around the first verb.

Je ne viens pas de manger.	I did not just eat.
Tu ne viens pas de travailler.	You did not just work.
Il ne va pas partir.	He is not going to leave.
Elle ne va pas étudier.	She is not going to study.
Nous n’allons pas regarder un film.	We are not going to watch a movie.

4.10.9. Core Patterns

venir de + infinitive	to have just done something
Je viens de manger.	I just ate.
aller + infinitive	to be going to do something
Je vais manger.	I am going to eat.
ne + venir + pas de + infinitive	not to have just done something
Je ne viens pas de manger.	I did not just eat.
ne + aller + pas + infinitive	not going to do something
Je ne vais pas manger.	I am not going to eat.

4.10.10. Practice

I just studied. |

You just ate. informal |

He just left. |

We just spoke French. |

I am going to study tonight. |

You are going to work tomorrow. informal |

She is going to watch a movie. |

They are going to do homework. |

I did not just eat. |

I am not going to leave. |

4.10.11. Answers

I just studied.	Je viens d’étudier.
You just ate. informal	Tu viens de manger.
He just left.	Il vient de partir.
We just spoke French.	Nous venons de parler français.
I am going to study tonight.	Je vais étudier ce soir.
You are going to work tomorrow. informal	Tu vas travailler demain.
She is going to watch a movie.	Elle va regarder un film.
They are going to do homework.	Ils font faire les devoirs.
I did not just eat.	Je ne viens pas de manger.
I am not going to leave.	Je ne vais pas partir.

4.10.12. Short Dialogue

A : Tu viens de manger ?	A: Did you just eat?
B : Oui, je viens de manger. Et toi ?	B: Yes, I just ate. And you?
A : Non, je vais manger ce soir.	A: No, I am going to eat tonight.
B : D’accord. Moi, je vais étudier.	B: Okay. I am going to study.

4.10.13. Checkpoint

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to use venir de + infinitive to talk about the recent past, use aller + infinitive to talk about the near future, ask simple questions about recent and upcoming actions, and make negative sentences with these structures.