1、Unit 3 Festivals and customs Grammar and usage Various forms of future in the past Perceiving the rules 1 Step Read the following sentences and focus on the tense in each of them. Mark and I would spend a few weeks travelling after he graduated. We were going to spend our holiday in Paris. The journ
2、ey that was to change my life started in July that year. I was about to take a bath when the telephone rang. was/were going to do Future in the past would do was/were to do was/were about to do We use would do to report an action in the past from a time when it was still in the future. We use was/we
3、re going to do to indicate a past intention or arrangement. We use was/were to do to mean that the future action actually happened. We use was/were about to do to show that the action would happen very soon. Exploring the rules 2 Step Read the following sentences and pay attention to the words in re
4、d. When I was a kid, I would always go to the beach. I was going to see a documentary film about the Spring Festival with Joanna on Saturday, but she didnt feel well, so I just stayed at home. Colin was about to get off the camel when a child ran towards him. When I was a kid, I would always go to t
5、he beach. Would do can indicate the repetition of an action in the past. I was going to see a documentary film about the Spring Festival with Joanna on Saturday, but she didnt feel well, so I just stayed at home. Was/Were going to do can mean somebody had intended to do something but didnt do it, or
6、 something that was supposed to happen didnt actually happen. Colin was about to get off the camel when a child ran towards him. Was/Were about to do expresses the very near future and it is usually used with the conjunction when. Im so sorry. I was going to prepare the reports today but I completel
7、y forgot about them. Please accept my apologies. I thought the order would be complete by now but theres been a delay at the factory. Read the following sentences and pay attention to the words in red. Was/Were going to do and would do can be used to introduce apologies. It can introduce an excuse o
8、r explanation of why an event didnt happen as planned. Read the following sentences and pay attention to the words in red. Simon hurried into the carriage. The train was leaving in a few minutes. He told me that he was going to bed because it was too late. The bus was coming, so he left. Was/Were do
9、ing can also be used to describe an action in the future from the perspective of some point in the past. This happens especially with verbs such as go, come, start, leave and arrive. Applying the rules 3 Step Choose the best answer. Every time they met, they _ talk about former classmates they remem
10、bered. A. could B. would C. should D. will She left at 8 a.m. and _ the airport in an hour. A. would reach B. will reach C. had reached D. reached Why didnt you come to my party? Im sorry. I _ but my teacher called and asked me to go to his office. A. will B. would C. was going to D. was to They _ a
11、 basketball match when I saw them. A. had B. would have C. are having D. were about to have Fill in the blanks with the correct forms of the words in the brackets. They made up their mind that they _ (buy) a new house at once. This was the beginning of a civil war that _ (last) for nearly four years
12、. He told me the conference _ (start) in half an hour. We could see that the fence _ (fall) down before long, so we had it mended. would buy was to last was starting was going to fall I _ him missing when he walked through the door. It was announced that the president _ (visit) Thailand in July. Whe
13、n I was a teenager, I _ (talk) with my parents every evening . It was his last day at schoolhe _ (leave) the next morning. was to visit was about to report was to leave would talk Complete the following diary. 15th July Since _ (我们将要看日出) in the desert early today, we decided to go to bed earlier tha
14、n usual last night. Just as _ (我们正要进 入睡袋), strong winds began to blow. We thought _ (大风将持 续到早上), and that _ (我们将看不到天上任何东西) except sand. We were all upset, but my friend Mike decided that _ (他 会早起) anyway. Luckily, when we got up this morning, we found the weather was extraordinary. The sun rose, as
15、it always does, in the sky. We sat in total silence and looked at the beautiful pinks and yellows of the sunrise. We didnt stayed for very long because _ (我们要离开前往下一个 目的地) . It was something that _ (我永远不会忘记). 15th July Since we were going to watch the sunrise in the desert early today, we decided to
16、go to bed earlier than usual last night. Just as we were about to get into our sleeping bags, strong winds began to blow. We thought the strong winds would last until morning, and that we wouldnt see anything in the sky except sand. We were all upset, but my friend Mike decided that he would get up
17、early anyway. Luckily, when we got up this morning, we found the weather was extraordinary. The sun rose, as it always does, in the sky. We sat in total silence and looked at the beautiful pinks and yellows of the sunrise. We didnt stay for very long because we were to leave for the next destination. It was something that I would never forget. A possible sample Write a short passage about your former plan using future in the past.
