Abstract
In the English grammar lessons, <i>will</i> and <i>shall</i> are taught in schools and universities as modal verbs. Almost all famous grammarians confirm that <i>will</i> and <i>shall</i> are modal verbs. Modal verbs are considered as auxiliaries apart from the main or primary auxiliaries <i>be, have, and do</i>. Considering the definitions and characteristics of auxiliaries and inflections, a deep understanding of <i>will</i> and <i>shall</i> is required. This paper examines the definitions and characteristics of both auxiliaries and inflections and the uses of <i>will</i> and <i>shall</i> in order to know whether <i>will</i> and <i>shall</i> are auxiliaries or free inflections of the Future Tense. However it is worth mentioning that time is divided into <i>past, present, and future</i>. In modern English, almost grammarians say that there are two tenses in English namely <i>present tense</i> and <i>past tense</i>. According to them, the future tense does not exist. They believe so simply because there is no inflection for future tense; the futurity is expressed through modal verbs (will and shall). Generally speaking, modal auxiliaries help lexical verbs to express a variety of meanings, different attitudes, such as mood, aspect, etc. whereas inflections help verbs to express tenses. For instance, -<i>ed</i> is a bound inflection that helps regular verbs express the <i>simple past tense</i>. The –<i>s</i> is also a bound inflection that expresses the third person singular in the <i>Simple Present Tense</i> whereas –<i>Ø is</i> an invisible inflection which expresses the <i>first persons (singular and plural), second persons (singular and plural), and the third person plural of the Simple Present Tense).</i> Is there any inflection for the <i>Future Tense?</i> This paper is an attempt to answer this question.
Highlights
In almost all grammar books, one reads that will and shall are modal auxiliary verbs
The aim of this article is to examine the veracity of the fact that will and shall are modal verbs and point out what they are exactly
Some say that there are two tenses in English. This is the case of the Collins English Language Teaching, Lawless English and others
Summary
In almost all grammar books, one reads that will and shall are modal auxiliary verbs. Most grammarians assert that there are two tenses in the English language. This fact should attract the attention of any attentive linguist so as to examine the veracity of such an affirmation. The aim of this article is to examine the veracity of the fact that will and shall are modal verbs and point out what they are exactly. It discusses and demonstrates to which extent there are three tenses in English instead of two claimed by most grammarians, and it proves that the Future Tense exists in the English Language. The Future Tense has and it must have its inflection
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