Language/Lao/Grammar/Future-Tense

Lao Grammar - Future Tense

Hi Lao learners! 😊

In this lesson, we will focus on the future tense in Lao. The future tense is used to talk about an action or event that will happen in the future. In Lao, the future tense is formed by using the words "ແມ່ນ" (mǣn) or "ຈະ" (jǎ).

After mastering this lesson, these related pages might interest you: Personal pronouns & Pronouns.

Future Tense with "ແມ່ນ" (mǣn)

To express the future tense with "ແມ່ນ" (mǣn), simply add it after the verb. Let's see some examples:

Lao	Pronunciation	English
ຈົ່ງເປັນຜູ້ໃດຂອງຂ້ອຍແມ່ນມີຄວາມຍາວແລະເອົາລະບຸ	jǒng pēn phenn dây khǭng koy mǣn mii khuua yaaw láe ēr bùh	"I will be someone important in the future and achieve my goals."
ມັງກອນທີ່ຂ້ອຍຈະແຄດ	maang kǭi thî khǭng jǎ kǣd	"Tomorrow I will go to the market."
ມື້ນີ້ພວກເຮົາຈະແຈ້ງຂອງເທົ່ານີ້	mừə nii phǔak hĕûa jǎ jèng khǭng thêu nǎi	"Today we will have a meeting about this issue."

Note that "ແມ່ນ" (mǣn) can also be used in the present tense to express a current state of being or a habit.

Future Tense with "ຈະ" (jǎ)

Another way to express the future tense is by using "ຈະ" (jǎ). This word is placed before the verb in a sentence. Here are some examples:

Lao	Pronunciation	English
ມື້ນີ້ຂ້ອຍຈະໃຫ້ເຮົາກັບເຕີມ	mư̂ə nii khǭng jǎ hǎi hăwm kȏo dtem	"Tomorrow I will give you a call."
ພວກເຮົາຈະພົບເກີ	phǔak hăwm jǎ phōb kōi	"We will try our best."
ເຮົາຈະບໍ່ເປັນຜູ້ຜັງຜຽນເມື ອງ	hăwm jǎ baw pěn phăng vǎy mĕuang	"I will not be a tourist anymore."

Note that "ຈະ" (jǎ) can also be used in the past tense to express a future action that did not happen.

Dialogues

• Person 1: ເນື້ອແມ່ນຈະເຫັນໄປຑານຂ້ອຍດຽວນີ້ (Nǝ̄y mǣn jǎ ēn pai taa nǎy khǭng dǐaw nii) ("I will take the bus to go there.")
• Person 2: ຂ້ອຍຈະນອນລົດເກີດຄວາມຍາວ (Khǭng jǎ nǭn lót kȏo khuua yaaw) ("I will ride my bike.")
• Person 1: ຢ່າປະມານບໍ່ກໍຈະມາກົດມາຫານຂ້ອຍບໍ່ດີ (Yòo păan baw kǭ jǎ mǎ kód mă hăan khǭng baw dii) ("I probably won't eat durian.")
• Person 2: ຈະເກີນໄດ້ເຫຼືອ (Jǎ kōi dai hǔe) ("You should try it.")

Tips

To improve your Lao Grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

Sources

• Lao grammar - Wikipedia
• Lao Language--Grammar Notes 6
• WALS Online - Language Lao

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Other Lessons

• How to Use Be
• Personal pronouns
• Adjectives
• Questions
• How to Use Have
• Demonstrative Pronouns
• Conditional Mood
• Plurals
• Pronouns