1 Going to expresses a person's plans and intentions.
She's going to be a ballet dancer when she grows up.We're going to stay in a villa in France this summer.2 We also use going to when we can see now that something is sure to happen in the future.
Look at those clouds. It's going to rain. (= I'm sure.)| Subject | To be | Verb | |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | 'm | ||
| He / She / It | 's | (not) going to | have a break. / stay at home. / be late. |
| We / You / They | 're |
| To be | Subject | Verb | |
|---|---|---|---|
| am | I | ||
| is | he / she / it | going to | have a break? / stay at home? |
| are | we / you / they |
1 The Present Continuous can also describe a future intention.
I'm playing tennis this afternoon.Jane's seeing her boyfriend tonight.2 Often there is little difference between going to and the Present Continuous to refer to future time.
I'm seeing Peter tonight.I'm going to see Peter tonight.3 With the verbs to go and to come, we usually use the Present Continuous.
We're going to Paris next week.Joe and Tim are coming for lunch tomorrow.The infinitive can express why a person does something.
I'm saving my money to buy a CD player. (= I want to buy a CD player.)We're going to Paris to have a holiday. (= We want to have a holiday.)