Future Forms: Will vs. Going to – English Grammar Exercises for A2
Dividing Tasks (Students discussing their planned tasks for next week’s class Christmas party).
Choose the best option (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence. Read the context carefully before making your choice.
1 “I talked to my mom, and she agreed. I ______ bring the Christmas tree tomorrow.”
(A) am going to
(B) will
(C) going to
(D) should
2 According to our task list, Sarah ______ bake some gingerbread cookies for us.
(A) has to
(B) will
(C) is going to
(D) is going
3 We already asked the teacher, so we ______ decorate the classroom this Friday afternoon.
(A) will
(B) are going to
(C) are go to
(D) would
4 “Who is buying the drinks?” – “My parents ______, they promised me yesterday.”
(A) will
(B) might
(C) are going to
(D) going to buy
5 David is in charge of entertainment. He ______ make a playlist of holiday music tonight.
(A) will
(B) is going to makes
(C) is going to
(D) can
6 Let me check the notes. According to our plan, who ______ buy the paper plates and cups?
(A) is going to
(B) will
(C) are going to
(D) ought to
7 I have the shopping list right here. We ______ need a lot of snacks for 30 people!
(A) shouldn’t
(B) will
(C) going to
(D) are going to
8 “What is your specific task, Anna?” – “I ______ hang the fairy lights on the windows.”
(A) am going to
(B) am go to
(C) will
(D) could
9 Mark and Tom ______ help clean up the room after the party finishes. We assigned them this task yesterday.
(A) may
(B) are going to
(C) will
(D) is going to
10 We agreed on the budget yesterday. We ______ spend more than $50 on decorations.
(A) don’t have to
(B) won’t
(C) aren’t going to
(D) not going to
11 “I saw the draft of our plan. ______ invite the teachers too?”
(A) Will we
(B) Do we going to
(C) Are we going to
(D) Should we
12 Jane talked to the local bakery, and they ______ deliver the cake exactly at 2 PM.
(A) are going to
(B) will
(C) is going
(D) must
13 Everyone agreed on the schedule. The party ______ start exactly at 5 PM next Friday.
(A) going to
(B) is going to
(C) used to
(D) will
14 I checked the weather forecast for next week. It ______ snow on the day of our party!
(A) will
(B) has to
(C) is going to
(D) going to
15 We ______ play any loud music because the classroom next door has a test. We decided this to avoid trouble.
(A) won’t
(B) aren’t going to
(C) don’t going to
(D) couldn’t
16 “______ organize the Secret Santa gift exchange this year?” – “Yes, Peter is.”
(A) Will someone
(B) Does someone going to
(C) Is someone going to
(D) Can someone
17 Since we already collected all the money from the class, I ______ go to the supermarket after school today.
(A) will
(B) am going
(C) would
(D) am going to
18 Look at these beautiful ornaments you bought! Where ______ put them?
(A) are you going to
(B) will you
(C) do you going to
(D) you are going to
19 They ______ order pizza because most students voted for fried chicken instead. That’s the final decision.
(A) shouldn’t
(B) won’t
(C) aren’t going to
(D) aren’t going
20 To make sure everything is perfect, we ______ have a quick rehearsal tomorrow. Everyone has already agreed.
(A) might
(B) are going to
(C) will
(D) will going to
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (A) am going to
Why it’s correct: The action of bringing the Christmas tree was decided beforehand (the student talked to their mom and she agreed).
Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake: “Will” is used for instant decisions, which is incorrect for a pre-planned context. (C) Structural Error: Missing the “to be” verb (“am”). (D) Strong Distractor: “Should” gives advice; it doesn’t express a firm intention.
2 (C) is going to
Why it’s correct: Baking cookies is part of an arranged schedule (“task list”).
Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake: Learners often overuse “will” for all future tenses. (D) Structural Error: Missing the preposition “to” before the main verb. (A) Strong Distractor: “Has to” implies obligation, losing the nuance of actively planning a task.
3 (B) are going to
Why it’s correct: The action has already been approved by the teacher (“already asked”), making it a definite plan.
Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake: “Will” is incorrect for pre-arranged plans. (C) Structural Error: Incorrect verb form (“go” instead of “going”). (D) Strong Distractor: “Would” is used for conditionals or past habits.
4 (C) are going to
Why it’s correct: The parents promised yesterday, establishing a fixed plan for the future.
Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake: Incorrectly using “will” for an established plan. (D) Structural Error: Missing the “to be” verb (“are”). (B) Strong Distractor: “Might” indicates a 50% possibility, contradicting the fact that the parents firmly promised.
5 (C) is going to
Why it’s correct: This is a task David was officially assigned (“in charge of”), meaning making the playlist is his planned intention.
Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake: “Will” does not fit the context of an intention. (B) Structural Error: Adding an “s” to the main verb (“makes”) after “to”. (D) Strong Distractor: “Can” indicates ability, not a definite intention to do something.
6 (A) is going to
Why it’s correct: The question is based on an existing document (“According to our plan”) and asks about a singular subject “who”.
Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake: “Will” is incorrect here. (C) Structural Error: “Who” as a subject question word defaults to a singular verb (“is”, not “are”). (D) Strong Distractor: “Ought to” means “should,” which asks for advice rather than confirming a plan.
7 (D) are going to
Why it’s correct: This is a prediction based on clear present evidence (holding the shopping list and knowing there are 30 people).
Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake: “Will” is used for predictions without evidence. (C) Structural Error: Missing the “to be” verb (“are”). (A) Strong Distractor: “Shouldn’t” makes the sentence illogical in this context.
8 (A) am going to
Why it’s correct: Confirming a specific task (“specific task”) that the individual was assigned previously.
Error Analysis: (C) Common Mistake: Incorrect use of “will”. (B) Structural Error: Incorrect structure “am go to”. (D) Strong Distractor: “Could” means “might be able to,” reducing the certainty of the planned task.
9 (B) are going to
Why it’s correct: The task was assigned yesterday (“assigned them… yesterday”), and the subject is plural.
Error Analysis: (C) Common Mistake. (D) Structural Error: The subject “Mark and Tom” is plural, so “is” is incorrect. (A) Strong Distractor: “May” indicates permission or low probability.
10 (C) aren’t going to
Why it’s correct: The negative form of an agreed-upon plan (“agreed on the budget yesterday”).
Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake: “Won’t” is not used for settled plans. (D) Structural Error: Missing the “to be” verb (“are”). (A) Strong Distractor: “Don’t have to” means “it is not necessary,” which distorts the meaning of “decided not to.”
11 (C) Are we going to
Why it’s correct: Asking to confirm a detail that is part of a drafted plan (“saw the draft”).
Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake. (B) Structural Error: Using the auxiliary verb “Do” instead of “Are”. (D) Strong Distractor: “Should we” asks for advice, rather than confirming a fact written in the plan.
12 (A) are going to
Why it’s correct: An arrangement has been confirmed with the bakery. “They” (the bakery) will deliver it as planned.
Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake. (C) Structural Error: Missing “to” and the main verb. (D) Strong Distractor: “Must” indicates obligation, which is unnatural when describing a scheduled delivery service.
13 (B) is going to
Why it’s correct: The schedule has been agreed upon by everyone (“agreed on the schedule”).
Error Analysis: (D) Common Mistake. (A) Structural Error: Missing “is”. (C) Strong Distractor: “Used to” describes a past habit, which is entirely the wrong tense.
14 (C) is going to
Why it’s correct: A future prediction based on present evidence (“checked the weather forecast”).
Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake. (D) Structural Error: Missing “is”. (B) Strong Distractor: “Has to” indicates obligation; the weather cannot be “obligated” to do something.
15 (B) aren’t going to
Why it’s correct: A deliberate, planned decision (“decided this”) not to play loud music.
Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake. (C) Structural Error: Incorrect negative structure (“don’t” instead of “aren’t”). (D) Strong Distractor: “Couldn’t” is the past tense of “can”, which is the wrong tense here.
16 (C) Is someone going to
Why it’s correct: Asking about the planned intentions of others (if anyone has taken on this task).
Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake. (B) Structural Error: Using “Does” with “going to”. (D) Strong Distractor: Asking about ability (“Can”) instead of asking about the planned task division.
17 (D) am going to
Why it’s correct: Going to the supermarket is the next step in a planned sequence of events (after collecting the money).
Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake. (B) Structural Error: “Am going” is missing “to + verb”. (C) Strong Distractor: Changes the meaning contextually.
18 (A) are you going to
Why it’s correct: The decorations are already bought, so the speaker is asking about the planned location to put them.
Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake. (C) Structural Error: Using the auxiliary verb “do”. (D) Structural Error: Incorrect word order for a question (failing to invert “are” and the subject).
19 (C) aren’t going to
Why it’s correct: The final decision (“final decision”) is not to order pizza because the majority voted for fried chicken.
Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake. (D) Structural Error: Missing “to” or the main verb. (A) Strong Distractor: “Shouldn’t” (it’s a bad idea) is too weak compared to the phrase “final decision.”
20 (B) are going to
Why it’s correct: The rehearsal is something everyone has previously agreed upon (“already agreed”).
Error Analysis: (C) Common Mistake. (D) Structural Error: Incorrectly combining “will” and “going to”. (A) Strong Distractor: “Might” indicates a low probability, which cannot be used for something that is already agreed upon.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
1 The Nature of “Be going to” (Plans & Intentions): Unlike “Will”, which is used for spontaneous decisions made right at the moment of speaking, “Be going to” is used when the decision was made before the time of speaking (Prior Intentions). In the context of teamwork or dividing tasks, we always use “Be going to” because everything has been discussed, agreed upon, and written down (like in a task list or schedule).
2 Evidence-based Predictions: You must also use “Be going to” when there are clear signs in the present that lead you to conclude something will happen.
Example: Looking at the weather forecast (the evidence) → It is going to snow.
3 The Absolute Rule for Structure: The most common mistake for A2 learners is forgetting the “To be” verb (am/is/are) or the preposition “to”.
Correct formula: S + am/is/are + (not) + going to + base verb.
Any variations like will going to, is go to, or going to buy (missing the ‘to be’ verb) are fundamental grammar errors.