future

/ˈfjutʃər/
/ˈfjutʃə/
IPA guide

Other forms: futures; futurely

A time that hasn’t happened yet is the future. You're reading this in the present, and what you read by clicking on the link for the next screen will happen in the future, i.e., in the time ahead.

Future goes back to the Latin root futūrus "about to be," and it is a noun or an adjective referring to things to come. When we hope, we are often imagining what will happen in the future. You might dream of becoming a doctor in the future, or you're looking forward to the weekend, just days away but still in the future. Now is the present, yesterday is the past, and tomorrow is the future, the opposite of the past.

Definitions of future
  1. noun
    the time yet to come
    synonyms: futurity, hereafter, time to come
    see moresee less
    antonyms:
    past
    the time that has elapsed
    types:
    show 5 types...
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    kingdom come
    the end of time
    by-and-by
    an indefinite time in the future
    offing
    the near or foreseeable future
    tomorrow
    the near future
    manana
    an indefinite time in the future
    type of:
    time
    the continuum of experience in which events pass from the future through the present to the past
  2. noun
    a verb tense that expresses actions or states in the future
    synonyms: future tense
    see moresee less
    type of:
    tense
    a grammatical category of verbs used to express distinctions of time
  3. noun
    bulk commodities bought or sold at an agreed price for delivery at a specified future date
    see moresee less
    types:
    oil future, petroleum future
    petroleum bought or sold at an agreed price for delivery at a specified future date
    soybean future
    soybeans bought or sold at an agreed price for delivery at a specified future date
    wheat future
    wheat bought or sold at an agreed price for delivery at a specified future date
    type of:
    commodity, good, trade good
    articles of commerce
  4. adjective
    yet to be or coming
    “some future historian will evaluate him”
    synonyms:
    incoming
    arriving at a place or position
    approaching, coming, forthcoming, upcoming
    of the relatively near future
    future day
    yet to come
    early
    expected in the near future
    emerging, rising
    coming to maturity
    in store
    in readiness; awaiting
    prox, proximo
    in or of the next month after the present
    prospective
    of or concerned with or related to the future
    see moresee less
    antonyms:
    past
    earlier than the present time; no longer current
    present
    temporal sense; intermediate between past and future; now existing or happening or in consideration
    noncurrent
    not current or belonging to the present time
    outgoing
    leaving a place or a position
    old
    of long duration; not new
    ago, agone
    gone by; or in the past
    ancient
    belonging to times long past especially of the historical period before the fall of the Western Roman Empire
    bygone, bypast, departed, foregone, gone
    well in the past; former
    chivalric, knightly, medieval
    characteristic of the time of chivalry and knighthood in the Middle Ages
    early, former, other
    belonging to the distant past
    erstwhile, former, old, one-time, onetime, quondam, sometime
    belonging to some prior time
    former, late, previous
    (used especially of persons) of the immediate past
    historic, historical
    belonging to the past; of what is important or famous in the past
    last
    immediately past
    late, recent
    of the immediate past or just previous to the present time
    olden
    long past
    other
    recently past
    prehistoric, prehistorical
    belonging to or existing in times before recorded history
    then
    at a specific prior time
    ult, ultimo
    in or of the month preceding the present one
    existing
    presently existing
    immediate
    of the present time and place
    inst, instant
    in or of the present month
    latter-day
    belonging to the present or recent times
    show more antonyms...
  5. adjective
    effective in or looking toward the future
    “he was preparing for future employment opportunities”
    synonyms:
    prospective
    of or concerned with or related to the future
  6. adjective
    a verb tense or other formation referring to events or states that have not yet happened
    “future auxiliary”
  7. adjective
    (of elected officers) elected but not yet serving
    synonyms: next, succeeding
    incoming
    arriving at a place or position
Pronunciation
US
/ˈfjutʃər/
UK
/ˈfjutʃə/
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Word Family

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