"I stay in Canada" vs. "I will stay in Canada"

Question

Situation: I am in Canada and will go back to Hong Kong next week. So, I want to tell my friends that "I will stay in Canada until the 6th of March".

Question: I do not know if the word will should be used here. I am still in Canada, so, I think here present tense should be used, therefore, it should be written as "I stay in Canada until the 6th of March".

However, a future time "6th of March" is also mentioned in the same sentence. Therefore, future tense seems also reasonable. So, the correct one should be "I will stay in Canada until the 6th of March."

So, what kind of tense should I use here? This is very simple sentence structure for any native speaker, but for me, I still get confused.

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Feb 25 '13 at 15:47

3

You can use "I will stay" in that tomorrow and every day until March 6th (the future), you will continue to stay in Canada. The future tense may imply that you are not currently in Canada, but given the context (your friends know you're in Canada now), I don't think it's an issue.

If you were to use the present tense, you could say "I am staying in Canada until the 6th of March." That implies you're there now and in the act of staying put.

answered Feb 25 '13 at 15:47

seanhussey

151
1

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+1 Stay pretty much prohibits the implication you're worrying about. – StoneyB on hiatus Feb 25 '13 at 15:56
True, but while saying it out loud, I felt like it almost sounded as if OP were elsewhere. For instance, I'm at home now, but when I go on vacation, I will stay in a hotel. But you're right, within the greater context of the conversation with OP's friends, the implication is OP is currently there. – seanhussey Feb 25 '13 at 16:01
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I'll stay/I'm staying here in Canada ... covers all the bases. – StoneyB on hiatus Feb 25 '13 at 16:05
I agree, the addition of "here" fixes everything. (Virtual +1 to you until I can do so!) – seanhussey Feb 25 '13 at 16:07
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Monsieur Seanhussey et StoneyB . Merci Beaucoup! thank you ! – user37978 Feb 25 '13 at 16:34

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Feb 25 '13 at 16:07

0

I will/I'll stay until...

I am going to stay until...

I'll be staying until...

I think I'll stay until...

answered Feb 25 '13 at 16:07

Larry B

472

"I stay in Canada" vs. "I will stay in Canada"

2 Answers2