Help with future tense Please

Question

I need some help with the future tense. I am working on a paper and I have the following sentence: No voy a tendré un hijo aún (trans. I will not have a child yet). I am not sure the best way to conjugate my verbs. I have placed tener in the future tense, but I left ir in the present tense. I think the right translation may be: Iré voy a tener un hijo aún.

Please advice and thank you for your help!

Edit:

So to clarify, I am trying to use the simple future tense. Here is what I am coming to 'No iré tener un hijo aún' or 'No iré tendré un hijo aún'

Thanks for the information on profile , worth a vote from me . - ray76, Jun 30, 2016

Answer 1

Anti, it would be really helpful if you could add to your profile your levels of proficiency with English and Spanish.

Please review the simple future and the informal future.

The simple future is like your verb tendré.

The informal future uses ir (conjugated in the present) plus a plus an infinitive.

In both of your attempts, you have combined parts of both. Try again?

Like this: No iré tener un hijo aún - anti73, Jun 30, 2016

I would still keep tener in the infinitive, no? Cause I'm not supposed to double conjugate like this: No iré tendré un hijo aún. - anti73, Jun 30, 2016

My understanding is that the present indicative form is when ir a + infinitive is used. I am trying to use the simple future tense. So it seems like it would be 'No iré tener (or tendré) un hijo aún'. - anti73, Jun 30, 2016

You're still combining the two forms. There is no need for any form of "ir" when you are using the simple future conjugation of "tener." - jellonz, Jun 30, 2016

Like this: No tendré un hijo aun? - anti73, Jun 30, 2016

Can you explain why the ir is not needed in the future tense? I can't find any information on why this is anywhere. - anti73, Jun 30, 2016

"Ir" is not needed in the simple future because... it is not needed! Follow my links above and study the example sentences. - jtaniel, Jun 30, 2016

In English, there's "I will see them" and "I am going to see them" - both about the future, but only one uses the verb "to go." - jtaniel, Jun 30, 2016

Yep, that's it (although I'm unsure "aun" works. Maybe "todavia" instead). - jellonz, Jun 30, 2016

And yep, as Jt just said, it's not so much why the "ir" is not needed with the simple future, but why it is needed with the informal future. - jellonz, Jun 30, 2016

All that said, this sentence still sounds strange to me, in English at least. I'd go with "I *am not going to* have a child yet." I don't know which form would be more natural in Spanish. - jellonz, Jun 30, 2016

I would use , " I am not ready to have a child yet " using "going to " is superfluous and clunky in English. - ray76, Jul 1, 2016

Answer 2

Hello anti73,

Welcome to the SpanishDict forum

You said:

I need some help with the future tense. I am working on a paper and I have the following sentence: No voy a tendré un hijo aún (trans. I will not have a child yet). I am not sure the best way to conjugate my verbs. I have placed tener in the future tense, but I left ir in the present tense. I think the right translation may be: Iré voy a tener un hijo aún. Please advice and thank you for your help!

As Jtaniel wisely suggested, I recommend that you look at / review the future tense...following the link that he gave you!

You would not say no voy a tendré X (:

You should never mix two different verbal constructions, the first one being the informal or immediate future tense: voy a + infinitive of the required verb eg:

No voy a ir (infinitive) al dentista la semana que viene = I am not going to go to the dentist next week

and the second one, the future indicative tense: eg, tendré

It would be written as: No voy a tener (infinitive) un niño, except that the future tense is better employed here to describe an action that will happen at some unspecified time in the future!

Compraré un perro el año que viene = i will buy a dog next year

The informal /or immediate future construction: ir + infinitive is generally used for actions that are going to happen in the immediate future eg: later today, tomorrow or next week.

Mi sobrino va a estudiar esta tarde = My nephew is going to study this afternoon.

I hope this helps

My understanding is that the present indicative form is when ir a + infinitive is used, and this seems to be the same thing as the immediate future construction. - anti73, Jun 30, 2016

I am trying to use the simple future tense. Here is my best guest: 'No iré tener (or tendré) un hijo aún'. - anti73, Jun 30, 2016

The simple future would be: No tendré un hijo = I will not have a child Why do you wantt to use the word yet? The inclusion of this wor seems strange! - FELIZ77, Jun 30, 2016

FELIZ77: This is for a paper about my life in 10 years. I have to write about my future life. I am trying to say that I will not yet have a child in 10 years, but I am leaving open the possibility of having one after that. Hope that clarifies the purpose - anti73, Jul 1, 2016

Answer 3

Here is where you are getting confused:

There are two ways to express the future tense in both Spanish and English.

1. I am going to have a child. She is going to laugh.

2. I will have a child. She will laugh.

The first one is the verb IR conjugated in PRESENT INDICATIVE + a + verb in INFINITIVE.

Voy a tener (un) hijo.

Ella va a reírse

The second is a conjugation you should review.

Tendré (un) hijo

Ella se reirá

The two are mutually exclusive. You can't mesh them together as per your sentence above.

Best of luck, hope that makes a little more sense!

Answer 4

The problem persists when we try to make a literal translation from one language to another.

"No tendré un hijo todavía" (not aún) is technically correct using the future of "tener"

However as a native speaker, I am more inclined to say "No quiero tener un hijo todavía."

This is for an assignment so I am only allowed to use the following tenses: the future, the conditional, the present subjunctive, and the present perfect subjunctive. - anti73, Jun 30, 2016

"No quiero tener un hijo todavía." That is the present tense, correct? - anti73, Jun 30, 2016

Correct. - Daniela2041, Jun 30, 2016

Dani, is it equally acceptable to place the word todavía at the beginning of the sentence in this example? - FELIZ77, Jun 30, 2016

@Feliz77: Yes adverbs can be moved around, but in some cases it may change the meaning slightly. - Daniela2041, Jul 1, 2016