# acabaré de comer (acabar + infinitive + future)



## zeppo

Does "acabar de" keep its meaning of "just" in the Future Perfect tense and the future tense as in the examples below?


*Future Perfect*:

Yo habré acabado de comer.    I will have just eaten (by the time they arrive.)

Yo habré acabado de terminar de comer.    I will have just finished eating.  (Don't show up at 6pm to go for a jog with me, I will have just finished eating.)

The inclusion of "just" in the translation certainly seems possible to me, and would be useful.  But does it actually?

*Future*:

Yo acabaré de comer.    I will finish eating.    or    I will just finish eating.

I am guessing it loses the meaning "just" in the *future tense* much as it does in the preterite, correct?   I guess I could see the second option fitting  in the _sense _of "I will just make it (finish eating) in time."  Just not a lot of situations where one would use it, if indeed "just" would still be part of the translation.


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## Palabreja

As far as I see, the two first senteces are Futuro Perfecto. The second one sounds a bit odd because you are repeating that you "finish" (I will have finished finish eating).

So if we keep to _Habré acabado de comer_ y _Acabaré de comer (cuando ellos lleguen), _to me none of them have a "just" meaning, even though this is how you translate it into English. The Futuro perfecto one says that _I will not be eating when they arrive because I will have finished _(it doesn't imply whether it was an hour ago, or that I just did) The one with the Future tense (the second one) means that _I will finish eating *when* they arrive_, so they actually will find me eating.

Now, looking at your sentences, may be what you wanted to say is _Acabo de comer_. This one does implies "just did"
And now I have become curious: Can you have a futuro perfecto where you "just did"? I can't come with any examples, but please, do correct me!!


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## waterman

Hi, Zeppo,

I agree with Palabreja. Just can not be used in future sentences as its meaning is something very recently done or happened 

Best regards
*Future Perfect*:

Yo habré acabado de comer. I will have just eaten (by the time they arrive.)

Yo habré acabado de terminar de comer. I will have just finished eating. (Don't show up at 6pm to go for a jog with me, I will have just finished eating.)

The inclusion of "just" in the translation certainly seems possible to me, and would be useful. But does it actually?

*Future*:

Yo acabaré de comer. I will finish eating. or I will just finish eating.

I am guessing it loses the meaning "just" in the *future tense* much as it does in the preterite, correct? I guess I could see the second option fitting in the _sense _of "I will just make it (finish eating) in time." Just not a lot of situations where one would use it, if indeed "just" would still be part of the translation.[/QUOTE]


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## zeppo

waterman said:


> Hi, Zeppo,
> 
> I agree with Palabreja. Just can not be used in future sentences as its meaning is something very recently done or happened



I'm not sure about how you would convey this in Spanish then, but it is certainly possible in English.  For instance, a military operation is planned in regards to a train that runs like clockwork and crosses a bridge at the exact same time every night.

"We will set off the explosives at 1:45pm because at that time the train will have just crossed onto the bridge."

Or how about a situation where a friend is departing on a trip and, planning to see him before he leaves, you tell him:

"I will just make it in time to see you off."


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## flljob

¿Por qué usar la perífrasis? Es más fácil decir: cuando ellos lleguen ya habré comido. Pero no da el sentido de inmediatez, es decir, de que en el momento en que yo termine de comer, ellos llegarán.


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## zeppo

flljob said:


> ¿Por qué usar la perífrasis? Es más fácil decir: cuando ellos lleguen ya habré comido. Pero no da el sentido de inmediatez, es decir, de que en el momento en que yo termine de comer, ellos llegarán.



First of all I want to thank you for teaching me a new word-- in English!  I have never even seen or heard of the word periphrasis before. Interesting.

But the point is not in how to express the example, but what meaning the word "acabar de" is conveying when using it in the future or future perfect.  Will it still work to convey the meaning I have given in those english sentences, or will it not (in which case, then, yes one could  abandon "acabar" and instead find a different choice of words.   But my goal is to explore the possibilities of acabar, not how to say something in the future.


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## flljob

Habré acabado de terminar de comer (cuando ellos lleguen). Es una oración dificilísima y que no creo que haya alguien que la use. El _just _del inglés se traduce al español con la perífrasis _acabar de_. En el futuro es muy difícil dar el sentido de que se acaba de hacer algo cuando empieza otra acción. La perífrasis en futuro sería: _habré acabado de comer cuando ellos lleguen_. En este caso, me parece que la perífrasis deja de serlo y el verbo _acabar _vuelve a tener un sentido pleno, ya no traduce el _just _inglés. Tal vez para traducir el sentido de la oración inglesa se diría: _cuando ellos lleguen estaré acabando de comer_.

Pero espera más opiniones. 

Saludos


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## waterman

Hi, Zeppo,

My traslation into Spanish for the 1st sentence:

_"Desactivaremos los explosivos a la 1:45, porque a esa hora el tren  acabará (habrá acabado o habrá terminado) de cruzar el puente"_. Aparently is a future sentence, but notice you are stating that at 1:45 something (the train crossing the bridge) has just finished (wich is past).

The same for the snd sentence:

_"Acabaré (habré acabado) a tiempo para verte"

Kind regards,_



"We will set off the explosives at 1:45pm because at that time the train will have just crossed onto the bridge."

Or how about a situation where a friend is departing on a trip and, planning to see him before he leaves, you tell him:

"I will just make it in time to see you off."[/QUOTE]


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## spanishtution

I think that the English expresion and tense for "acabo  de" is "I have just eaten", it is a present perfect.
Regards
spanishtution


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## juandiego

zeppo said:


> Does "acabar de" keep its meaning of "just" in the Future Perfect tense and the future tense as in the examples below?
> *Future Perfect*:
> Yo habré acabado de comer.    I will have just eaten (by the time they arrive.)
> Yo habré acabado de terminar de comer.    I will have just finished eating.  (Don't show up at 6pm to go for a jog with me, I will have just finished eating.)
> 
> The inclusion of "just" in the translation certainly seems possible to me, and would be useful.  But does it actually?
> 
> *Future*:
> Yo acabaré de comer.    I will finish eating.    or    I will just finish eating.
> 
> I am guessing it loses the meaning "just" in the *future tense* much as it does in the preterite, correct?   I guess I could see the second option fitting  in the _sense _of "I will just make it (finish eating) in time."  Just not a lot of situations where one would use it, if indeed "just" would still be part of the translation.


Hi again, zeppo.

Very well spotted that part in green. Certainly it loses much or all of that _just_ sense when it's not in the present of indicative, nor even in the present of subjunctive. Ok, perhaps it keeps part of this _just_ meaning if the context prompts the speaker to use the same periphrasis in a future perfect, e.g.:
[A conversation between two people]
A.- Hey, B, I'm going to have my dinner at that new restaurant. Would you come with me?
B.- Too late, A, *acabo de cenar*. I'll see you there as soon as you've finished.
A.- O.K. *Habré acabado de cenar* a las 22:35. See you there at this time.
Anyway, the rest of the context is helping a lot to the understanding of a precise time and the future perfect of this periphrasis itself cannot guarantee the _just_ meaning.

Hardly this English temporal _just_ can be translated into the almost identical Spanish term _justo_ but there are occasions in which it transmits virtually the same:
"We will set off the explosives at 1:45pm because at that time the train will have just crossed onto the bridge."
[...] porque a esa hora el tren habrá *justo* pasado por el puente.
"I will just make it in time to see you off."
Estaré *justo* a tiempo para verte partir.


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## Palabreja

Zeppo,
if I'm correct you just want a Spanish way of saying "...the train will have *just* crossed onto the bridge" You just  want that "just"
my suggestion:
"...el tren habrá justo acabado de cruzar el puente"
other Spaniards, do you agree?


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## Doctorr

zeppo said:


> Yo habré acabado de comer.



Zeppo, Futuro perfecto (habré acabado) can be used only in _composite _sentences: habré acabado de comer _quando ellos regresen_ (I will have [already] eaten _when they come back_). It means that one can´t use just: habré acabado de comer.
NB: don´t confuse it with another type of phrases like: Ana _habrá _venido ya (Ann has [_probably_] come) - it means the assumption and it doesn´t have a sense of future, rather of past (let´s say it´s a "variant" of pretérito perfecto de indicativo: Ana ha venido ya - Ann has come (we know it for sure, it´s not a hypothesis)).
P.S. In Spanish, it´s not always necessary to use personal pronouns with verbs since verbal conjugations show clearly what person-thing-etc is meant: *yo* habr*é* hecho, *tú *habr*ás* hecho - habré and habrá are *distinct*, aren´t they?


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## juandiego

Palabreja said:


> Zeppo,
> if I'm correct you just want a Spanish way of saying "...the train will have *just* crossed onto the bridge" You just  want that "just"
> my suggestion:
> "...el tren habrá justo acabado de cruzar el puente"
> other Spaniards, do you agree?


Yes, I do, Palabreja.


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## zeppo

Palabreja said:


> Zeppo,
> if I'm correct you just want a Spanish way of saying "...the train will have *just* crossed onto the bridge" You just  want that "just"
> my suggestion:
> "...el tren habrá justo acabado de cruzar el puente"
> other Spaniards, do you agree?



thanks, Palabreja, and to Waterman, Spanishtuition and juandiego as well.

It seems there is a consensus that the meaning of "just" that is conveyed in the imperfect with acabar de will not have that same conveyance in future tense, and that I should not rely on "acabar de" in such circumstances.   So I with all of your very helpful replies, I think I have a handle on the word "acabar."  I think I have a good set of flashcards created now, although I've noticed a few errors I need to fix.  I will post them on the Flashcard Exchange as "Acabar Usage" ..   

I believe the next word I will work on may be Haber.


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## zeppo

juandiego said:


> Hi again, zeppo.
> 
> 
> B.- Too late, A, *acabo de cenar*. I'll see you there as soon as you've finished.
> A.- O.K. *Habré acabado de cenar* a las 22:35. See you there at this time.



I think you and the doctor have reminded me about the way future tenses work in Spanish.  I need to go back and review.


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## zeppo

PS: this is not related to the discussion above, but can you tell me if this example is correct that I found here in the Big Red Book of Spanish Verbs:

¡Acaba con tus ideas estrafalarias!

I don't understand why it wouldn't be Acabas (or Acabás, depending on your part of the world).


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## k-in-sc

Because it's a command. In the RP it would be "Acabá."


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## zeppo

k-in-sc said:


> Because it's a command. In the RP it would be "Acabá."



That was my first thought but figured they would have written it with an "e" instead of an "a".  Now I notice that the tus command does not use an "e".

thanks!


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## Doctorr

Zeppo,
acaba - imperative for you (tú)
acabe - imperative for you (usted)
acabá - imperative for you (vos - common for the Rioplatense region (Argentina and Uruguay) and also for Costa Rica and some parts of Colombia (e.g., Antioquia), i.e. for regions where _voseo_ is used).


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## Palabreja

And just to be a bit more nerdy...

negative imperative - use the subjunctive "no acabes!" and "no acabeis!"

I don't know how they say it where voseo is used (Rio de Plata, etc etc....)


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## zeppo

Doctorr said:


> Zeppo, Futuro perfecto (habré acabado) can be used only in _composite _sentences: habré acabado de comer _quando ellos regresen_ (I will have [already] eaten _when they come back_). It means that one can´t use just: habré acabado de comer.
> NB: don´t confuse it with another type of phrases like: Ana _habrá _venido ya (Ann has [_probably_] come) - QUOTE]
> 
> Would this be correct?:
> 
> She has probably finished eating. Ella habrá acabado de comer.


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## Palabreja

Posiblemente habrá acabado de comer


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## zeppo

Palabreja said:


> Posiblemente habrá acabado de comer



You are quick.  I immediately saw I had to correct a typing error and you had already replied before I could edit it.  

If I left off the "posiblemente" would the sentence convey some other meaning, or just not be a correct way of conveying anything?

thanks


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## Palabreja

You can leave "posiblemente" out. The sentence will have the same meaning (also the meaning of possibility). And it will be just as correct as the one with the adverb in it.


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## Doctorr

Zeppo, it´s not necessary to add posiblemente since habrá acabado already means "posiblemente".


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## juandiego

Palabreja said:


> You can leave "posiblemente" out. The sentence will have the same meaning (also the meaning of possibility). And it will be just as correct as the one with the adverb in it.


 


Doctorr said:


> Zeppo, it´s not necessary to add posiblemente since habrá acabado already means "posiblemente".


It's important to warn readers that only as far as the context makes clear it's not about a future event but a present or recent past.


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## zeppo

juandiego said:


> It's important to warn readers that only as far as the context makes clear it's not about a future event but a present or recent past.



Yes, juandiego, that is the point I was trying to clarify-- how it would be interpreted out of context.  I have found a webpage here (link) that explains what you have pointed out (middle of the page where it discusses future perfect.)  It gives several examples of usage to address both future and "present."

If you were to see or hear the sentence "Ella habrá acabado de comer" out of context is it more natural to be inclined to interpret it one way over the other?  Say for instance you were passing two strangers having a casual conversation and you couldn't make out anything as you approached or as you walked away, but as you passed you heard one  say "Ella habrá acabado de comer."  From what I understand, you wouldn't have anything to go on as far as context and could see either possible meaning of that sentence as being possible.  Or is it rather uncommon to use that phrasing to address a future event, leading one to presume its meaning to be about the "possible" present?

The answer to that last question is what I am getting at.

Thanks,
Rick


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## Palabreja

Zeppo,
both meanings are commonly used (past in a future event, and possibility). As juandiego says it's the context that will give you the answer as to which one is being used.
So about your question
_is it rather uncommon to use that phrasing to address a future event, leading one to presume its meaning to be about the "possible" present?_
no, it's not uncommon to use this tense as a past in the future. But it is neither uncommon to use it to infer possibility in the present.


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## juandiego

Hi again, zeppo.

 In the context you've brought up, and assuming it's a single sentence that is not followed or preceded by something that I would have failed to hear clearly but noticed, I'd say there's no other option than to interpret it as a possibility because, for referring to a future event, the sentence needs a temporal point of reference, obviously in the future, from which to consider the action already accomplished; e.g.: _Ella habrá acabado de comer a las 15:00/ antes que tú.
_
Your question, though, is interesting when you can also hear that temporal point of reference but it still doesn't solve the _possibility—future perfect_ dilemma, as the second option in the sentence above. In such a case, I agree with *palabreja*, you simply can't be sure, both are equally plausible and common.


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## zeppo

juandiego said:


> Hi again, zeppo.
> 
> In the context you've brought up, and assuming it's a single sentence that is not followed or preceded by something that I would have failed to hear clearly but noticed, I'd say there's no other option than to interpret it as a possibility because, for referring to a future event, the sentence needs a temporal point of reference, obviously in the future, from which to consider the action already accomplished; e.g.: _Ella habrá acabado de comer a las 15:00/ antes que tú.
> _
> .



I believe I understand now.  I had to wait until I had some more sleep.   In English, the use of future perfect doesn't have the two possibilities, so the "possible" or "probable" option is not a factor. Spanish has two options of interpretation, but the sentence is more naturally assumed to be addressing a possible scenerio when placed outside of any context.  So if you want to address the future, you would need to add more to either the sentence or the conversation such that your intent is made clear, otherwise, it will be assumed you are just expressing an uncertainty.  Is that correct?


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## Palabreja

I don't want to say anything categorical, but it seems that if you have a sentence in the perfect future tense without any context, then this will infer possibility:

ella habrá acabado de comer = she is probably finished eating
ella habrá acabado de comer a las tres = she'll be finished eating at three

OJO!! we are still talking about "acabar de (perfect future) + infinitive"


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## zeppo

juandiego said:


> Hi again, zeppo.
> 
> In the context you've brought up, and assuming it's a single sentence that is not followed or preceded by something that I would have failed to hear clearly but noticed, I'd say there's no other option than to interpret it as a possibility because, for referring to a future event, the sentence needs a temporal point of reference, obviously in the future, from which to consider the action already accomplished.



I guess one of the things I am trying to determine is whether it a grammatical necessity for the *sentence* to have that temporal reference for it to "correctly" reference the future.  Or is not necessary for it to be a grammatically correct way of referring to the future, but you just have to make sure your intent is understood one way or another, otherwise the listener is going to think you are speaking about a possibility, not something you feel is a certainty.


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## zeppo

Palabreja said:


> I don't want to say anything categorical, but it seems that if you have a sentence in the perfect future tense without any context, then this will infer possibility:
> 
> ella habrá acabado de comer = she is probably finished eating
> ella habrá acabado de comer a las tres = she'll be finished eating at three
> 
> OJO!! we are still talking about "acabar de (perfect future) + infinitive"



Very good response.  At the very least, I can see that, in effect, the use of perfect future is inclined towards a meaning of probability.  This evolved into a question about future perfect rather than acabar de, but it has been quite helpful.  Thanks!


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## juandiego

> At the very least, I can see that, in effect, *the use of perfect future is inclined towards a meaning of probability*



But, zeppo, the future temporal point of reference is also required in English —and I presume that in any other language with a similar tense— if we want to convey that some action will be already accomplished at some point in the future: the necessary context for its usage. You can't say something like _"I'll have finished it"_ if your interlocutor is clueless about when. This temporal reference belongs to the very nature of the tense itself; someway or another one should be able of working it out.

 Situations with no context on which to ground the plausibility of a verb tense, simply don't happen. Actually it works the other way around, once we know the temporal context, then we decide for a tense. 

In order not to create confusion, I should retract my previous comment about that there's no other option than to interpret probability when you hear a future perfect without a temporal reference, and it's exactly for the same reason of the non-existent temporal reference: neither you could infer that it's referring to the present or recent past if you don't know when we are talking about.

 In short, the future perfect in Spanish is used for both options but each one depends on its specific temporal context. With no temporal context it's impossible to know which one of its meaning the future perfect is conveying, therefore what you've said in the quote above could be deemed as the reply to a question that cannot exist.


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## Palabreja

Juandiego, sorry, but you are confusing me all the time.

Acabar de (in future perfect tense) + infinitive without a context DOES infer probability
Acabar de (in future perfect tense) + infinitive with a context indicating a temporal point doesn't. It gives you a meaning of past in the future.

Future perfect on its own (not talking about Acabar de + inf) can or cannot infer probability:
¿qué es ese ruido? habrá sido el gato
Sus acciones habrán sido en vano


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## juandiego

I disagree, palabreja.
I'll try to explain my point a bit better.

_Habrá acabado de comer_, without more context, this isolated sentence itself doesn't convey necessarily probability; neither it conveys necessarily a future perfect action. The reason is that it all will depend on the temporal frame in which we sense the verb is located.

 It's fundamental to point out that the temporal reference may perfectly be located without specific time adverbial phrases, as in the first example you've brought up in which the immediate past (or present) is easily inferred from the previous sentence _¿Qué es ese ruido?_ And as for the second example, it's another sentence with which we cannot be fully sure of whether it's referring to probability or a perfected action in the future. Have a look at the next examples with the same sentence in different contexts:
— _Si no resuelve el problema sus acciones habrán sido en vano_. (future—> future action completed)
— _No ha resuelto el problema, (supongo que) sus acciones habrán sido en vano_. (present—> probability)
    Those examples above illustrate both the necessity of a context to locate in time the action of the verb, and why in Spanish the future perfect it's also used for expressing probability since, ultimately, both are referring to the same thing but under slightly different circumstances.


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## Riano

Although the thread is about 'acabar de' using future tense, I think is important to emphasize that 'acabar de' has two meanings.

1) *"Normal" verb*
'acabar de' + infinitive = 'terminar de ' + infinitive = to finish + gerund
"He acabado de comer" = "He terminado de comer" = I've finished eating
"Acabaré de comer en 5 minutos" = "Terminaré de comer en 5 minutos" = I'll finish eating in 5 minutes
It doesn't mean 'just' in this case

2) *Auxiliar verb*
'acabar (in present) de' + infinitive = to have + just + participle (present perfect)
"Acabo de comer", but not "Termino de comer" = I've just eaten
"Acabo de terminar de comer" = "He terminado de comer ahora mismo", but not "He acabado de terminar de comer" = I've just finished eating
In these cases is not correct to say terminar ("termino de terminar de comer").

3) "Acabo de comer" = "Termino de comer"
"Acabo de comer en 5 minutos" = "Termino de comer en 5 minutos" = "Acabaré de comer en 5 minutos" = I'll finish eating in 5 minutes
In this case the present in Spanish is used with future sense


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## zeppo

juandiego said:


> But, zeppo, the future temporal point of reference is also required in English —and I presume that in any other language with a similar tense— if we want to convey that some action will be already accomplished at some point in the future: the necessary context for its usage. You can't say something like _"I'll have finished it"_ if your interlocutor is clueless about when. This temporal reference belongs to the very nature of the tense itself; someway or another one should be able of working it out.
> 
> Situations with no context on which to ground the plausibility of a verb tense, simply don't happen. Actually it works the other way around, once we know the temporal context, then we decide for a tense. .



In English, if you say "I'll have finished it," it won't be confused with "I've probably finished it."  They are of course written two different ways and will always have different meanings.  Whereas in Spanish with a single sentence you can have both meanings.   

Now as for a scenerio:

Joe is walking down the street.  Suddenly he hears someone call out:    "Hey, Joe! I'll have it finished!"

Joe turns around to see Tom waiving at him from across the street where he works in a bar and had just stepped outside for a smoke.

Joe is not expecting to see Tom and replies:  "Have what finished?"

Now keep in mind here, Joe has no question whatsoever that Tom is referring to his (Tom) having something finished in the future.  By when is not known yet, because he doesn't know what Tom is talking about.  But not knowing that still doesn't cause Joe to wonder if Tom, by saying what he said, is intending to convey "I have probably finished it."  Not in the least.  He knows Tom is talking about finishing something at some point in the future.

So Joe replies:  "Huh.  Finish what?  What are you talking about?"

Tom:  "Mary's portrait."

Joe: "Huh?"

Tom:  "Are you telling me you don't even remember?  You were more drunk than I thought.  You came in last night all distressed about not having a good gift to give her for her birthday on Saturday, and I told you to leave me her photograph and I would paint her portrait for you.  I can't believe you don't remember that!  You were freaking out about whether or not I could get it done in time."

Joe: "I don't even remember coming in.  My head still hurts.  I'm going to Mary's now."

Tom:  "Well, I'll have it done, don't worry!"

Joe:  "Ok, thanks!"

Tom works in bar but is also an artist.  What a nice guy, huh?  Joe had no clue what Tom was talking about, but it was never in doubt that Tom was talking about having something finished in the future without Tom saying any more than "I'll have it finished."  There can be no confusion as there is in Spanish with the future perfect.


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## zeppo

Palabreja said:


> Juandiego, sorry, but you are confusing me all the time.
> 
> Acabar de (in future perfect tense) + infinitive without a context DOES infer probability
> Acabar de (in future perfect tense) + infinitive with a context indicating a temporal point doesn't. It gives you a meaning of past in the future.
> 
> Future perfect on its own (not talking about Acabar de + inf) can or cannot infer probability:



It is okay if the context is provided in another sentence?  Or would it be grammatically incorrect to use future perfect in a sentence, intent on referring to the future (not the possible present), without including the temporal point in that very sentence.  

For instance, let's say you were writing an essay for class and it was going to be graded on grammar.  If you write a future perfect sentence without a temporal reference, intending that the preceding sentences will place it into proper context as to convey its meaning as applying to the future, would it be marked as incorrect grammar with the teacher noting that you needed to have a temporal reference within the sentence?  That is what I am trying to pin down, so to speak.


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## juandiego

zeppo said:


> It is okay if the context is provided in another sentence?  Or would it be grammatically incorrect to use future perfect in a sentence, intent on referring to the future (not the possible present), without including the temporal point in that very sentence.
> 
> For instance, let's say you were writing an essay for class and it was going to be graded on grammar.  *If you write a future perfect sentence without a temporal reference, intending that the preceding sentences will place it into proper context as to convey its meaning as applying to the future, would it be marked as incorrect grammar with the teacher noting that you needed to have a temporal reference within the sentence?*  That is what I am trying to pin down, so to speak.


Very funny example that above in post #38, zeppo. It was a good read that made me laugh for a while. It reminded me some situations in which I've been involved. You should be a scriptwriter in a sitcom. 

 I know that in English you never interpret the future perfect as probability; it wasn't my point. My point is that you don't use a verb tense without previously knowing the temporal reference in which you want to locate its action. Even in the funny scenario you have made up, Tom was fully aware of by when he should have Mary's portrait finished, and this is why he used the future perfect, regardless Joe was clueless because of his lack of sobriety.

As for your question highlighted in bold above, no, it's not necessary that the temporal reference is within the sentence; it could be in the previous context. For instance:
_Según se cree actualmente, el universo alcanzará un máximo grado de expansión. A partir de ahí, empezará a comprimirse, invirtiéndose completamente la secuencia de formación del universo y la flecha del tiempo hasta llegar a la concentración de toda la materia, energía y espacio en un punto infinitamente pequeño. *Todo habrá terminado*_.

In the sense of an action completed at some point in the future, the Spanish future perfect works exactly like the English's.

Take this following hint with a pinch of salt because it's not a rule or something of the sort but perhaps we tend to put the subject after the verb in the future perfect when conveying probability, whereas we keep it in its more natural position before the verb when conveying a perfected action in the future.


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## Riano

zeppo, I return to your initial post


zeppo said:


> *Future*:
> 
> Yo acabaré de comer. I will finish eating. or I will just finish eating.
> 
> I am guessing it loses the meaning "just" in the *future tense* much as it does in the preterite, correct? I guess I could see the second option fitting in the _sense _of "I will just make it (finish eating) in time." Just not a lot of situations where one would use it, if indeed "just" would still be part of the translation.



'Acabar de hacer algo' can have two meanings: 'to finish doing something' (normal verb) and 'to have just done something' (auxiliar verb). I'm going to use two examples with the future

1) Normal verb 
"Acabaré de comer en 5 minutos" = "Terminaré de comer en.." = "Finalizaré de comer .." = I'll finish eating in 5 minutes

2) Auxiliar verb
"Acabaré de empezar a comer cuando llegues" = "Justo habré empezado a comer cuando .." = I'll have just begun eating when you'll arrive
In this case is wrong to say:
"Terminaré de empenzar a comer .." = I'll finish beginning eating ..
or
"Habré acabado de empezar a comer .." = I'll have finished beginning eating ..

You also can say: "acabaré de terminar de comer .." = "I'll have just finished eating ..", but it doesn't sound elegant, and normally a native speaker will prefer to use "acabaré de comer .."


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## zeppo

juandiego said:


> My point is that you don't use a verb tense without previously knowing the temporal reference in which you want to locate its action. Even in the funny scenario you have made up, Tom was fully aware of by when he should have Mary's portrait finished, and this is why he used the future perfect, regardless Joe was clueless because of his lack of sobriety.



Yes, I see the point you were making and I understand that.  My own point, as you understand, was that regardless of having no context at all, there was no confusion at all to Joe that Tom was referring to a future event after Tom's first shout out to Joe (with nothing more being said other than "I'll have it finished." Whereas if the conversation had been in Spanish with Tom using the future perfect, as I understand it, Joe most likely either:

A) have no idea whether Tom was intending to convey the "possible present" or the "future action", with each being equal in likelihood in Joe's mind.

B) be inclined to take Tom's meaning as "I'll probably have finished it."

As to whether it would be A or B, I would leave it to you Spanish speakers to conjecture. But with English, of course, there is only one possibility in Joe's mind: that Tom is refering to the future.

I really thank you for clearing up the question I had about what is "grammatically correct." It is simply a question of getting one's meaning across. Without a temporal reference, I supposed one may also simply be inclined to just not use the future perfect, but instead phrase their thought about the "future" in another way that leaves no ambiguity or misunderstanding.


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## zeppo

juandiego said:


> Take this following hint with a pinch of salt because it's not a rule or something of the sort but perhaps we tend to put the subject after the verb in the future perfect when conveying probability, whereas we keep it in its more natural position before the verb when conveying a perfected action in the future.



Very good info, thanks!


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## Palabreja

Zeppo, I agree with juandiego - your little story about Tom and Joe was hilarious....
and also about your question.
You can write the future perfect in a sentence on its own, as long as you have a context given in your speech. Perfect future is what they call a "tiempo verbal relativo", that is, is a tense that is dependent on another tense - the temporal reference juandiego has been talking about.
As long as you use future tense to say that _something will occur_ *before* _another something will occur_, the use will be correct_
Mañana por la tarde me voy a mi casa, así que mañana por la mañana ya te habré dado las gracias por tu hospitalidad y te habré devuelto tu habitación
Cuando vuelva de EEUU habrá vivido allí más de cinco años_


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## zeppo

Riano, I really appreciate your posts.  You have given me some good examples.

I need sometime to look them over, so if I have any questions they might follow later.

Thanks!
Rick


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