Future in the Past

Future in the Past is used to express the idea that in the past you
thought something would happen in the future. It does not matter if
you are correct or not. Future in the Past follows the same basic
rules as the Simple Future. "Would" is used to volunteer or promise,
and "was going to" is used to plan. Moreover, both forms can be
used to make predictions about the future.

Like Simple Future, Future in the Past has two different forms in
English: "would" and "was going to." Although the two forms can
sometimes be used interchangeably, they often express two different
meanings.

FORM Would [would + VERB]

Examples:

I knew you would help him.

I knew you would not help him.

FORM Was/Were Going To

[was/were + going to + VERB]

Examples

I knew you were going to go to the party.

I knew you were not going to go to the party.

 Would
Would is an auxiliary verb, a modal auxiliary verb. We use would mainly
to:

talk about the past

talk about the future in the past
express the conditional mood

We also use would for other functions, such as:

expressing desire, polite requests and questions, opinion or

hope, wish and regret...

Structure of Would (subject + would + main verb)

The main verb is always the bare infinitive (infinitive without "to").

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ She would like tea.

'd

- She would not like whisky.

wouldn't

? Would she like coffee?

Use of Would

would: Talking about the past

We often use would as a kind of past tense of will or going to:

Even as a boy, he knew that he would succeed in life.

I thought it would rain so I brought my umbrella.

Using would as as a kind of past tense of will or going to is common in

reported speech:

She said that she would buy some eggs. ("I will buy some
eggs.")
The candidate said that he wouldn't increase taxes. ("I won't
increase taxes.")
Why didn't you bring your umbrella? I told you it would rain! ("It's
going to rain.")

We often use would not to talk about past refusals:

He wanted a divorce but his wife would not agree.

Yesterday morning, the car wouldn't start.

We sometimes use would (rather like used to) when talking about
habitual past behaviour:

Every weekday my father would come home from work at 6pm

and watch TV.
Every summer we'd go to the seaside.
Sometimes she'd phone me in the middle of the night.
 Would- Future in past
When we talk about the past we can use would to express something
that has not happened at the time we are talking about:

In London she met the man that she would one day marry.
He left 5 minutes late, unaware that the delay would save his life.

When we talk about the future from a time in the past we use:

would as the past tense of will

He thought he would buy one the next day.

Everyone was excited. The party would be fun

I knew Julie would make dinner.

He promised he would send a postcard from Egypt

I said I would help him later.

I said I would never help him.

 WAS/WERE GOING TO
Simple Future has two different forms in English: "will" and "be going
to." Although the two forms can sometimes be used interchangeably,
they often express two very different meanings. These different
meanings might seem too abstract at first, but with time and practice,
the differences will become clear. Both "will" and "be going to" refer
to a specific time in the future.

Be going to" expresses that something is a plan. It expresses the

idea that a person intends to do something in the future. It does not
matter whether the plan is realistic or not.

FORM Was/Were Going To

[was/were + going to + VERB]

EXAMPLES:
1. He was going to go to London next week, but cancelled his trip due a
death in the family.
2. At the university, I was study Business, but changed to Economics.
3. They were going to come to the party, but it started snowing so they
decided to stay home instead.
was/were + going to + place
1. She was going to school when she got robbed.
2. They were going to the football match when our car broke down.
3. Bill was going to the Doctor when he passed out.
** can also be used with action verbs
She was walking to school when she was robbed. (estava andando)
They were driving to the football match when their car broke down.
(estava dirigindo)
Bill was seeing the Doctor when he passed out.

Active / Passive Verb Forms

Sentences can be active or passive. Therefore, tenses also have
"active forms" and "passive forms." You must learn to recognize the
difference to successfully speak English.

Active Form

In active sentences, the thing doing the action is the subject of the
sentence and the thing receiving the action is the object. Most
sentences are active.

[Thing doing action] + [verb] + [thing receiving action]

Examples:
Passive Form

In passive sentences, the thing receiving the action is the subject of

the sentence and the thing doing the action is optionally included
near the end of the sentence. You can use the passive form if you
think that the thing receiving the action is more important or should
be emphasized. You can also use the passive form if you do not
know who is doing the action or if you do not want to mention who is
doing the action.

[Thing receiving action] + [be] + [past participle of verb] + [by] +

[thing doing action]

Examples:
 EXAMPLES

Future in I knew John would I knew the work would be

the Past finish the work by 5:00 finished by 5:00 PM.
WOULD PM. I knew you would be
I knew you would help helped him.
him. He promised he would be
He promised he would sent a postcard from Egypt.
send a postcard from
Egypt
Future in I thought Sally was I thought a beautiful
the Past going to make a dinner was going to be
WAS GOING beautiful dinner tonight. made by Sally tonight.
TO

The car was going to be The car was going to be

washed being washed