What are you doing this weekend?

Grammar Point

What are you doing this weekend?
What, with that sun outside, I am pretty sure a lot of you are going to the beach!

Before that, however, we should be able to tell people what our plans are correctly. It is common to use will when referring to the future, but there are other verbs that can be used when talking about things that you have planned to do this weekend, next week, or in the coming days.

Remember that we normally use will if it is a decision that we have just made. However, we use the continuous tense (verb-ing) when mentioning plans, as in the following sentences:

1. I am playing badminton with Jim this weekend. (You have planned to play badminton with Jim)

2. We are going to the movies tonight.

3. She is going to Paris next month.

Notice the difference between the two sentences below:

1. I do not have anything to do this weekend, so  I will probably call up some friends for a drink.

2. Sorry, I cannot go with you this weekend, since I am drinking out with my college buddies. We made this plan about 3 months ago.

Vocabulary

Proceed with vs. Proceed to

Proceed with is used as in the sentence below:

We cannot wait for them, so please proceed with (start) the meeting. They will have to make do with the minutes later.

Proceed to as in the following example,

Please proceed to (go to) the front desk. They should be able to give you the information you need.

Add-ons

Still on Subject-Verb agreement. By now, you should no longer be a stranger to how these two must agree. There are several rules on this, but let me just mention the ones that I think are very important.

1. A number vs. The number

A number uses plural verb, while The number uses a singular verb, as in the examples below:

A number of my friends on facebook like to talk about what they are up to.

The number of children getting respiratory diseases has increased.

2. Either-or, Neither-nor

- The verb agrees with the nearer subject (usually after or or nor).

E.gs.

Either she or her parents are cooking dinner.

Neither her friends nor Jenny is coming to the party.


Practice
A number of my friends are going hiking this weekend. They will meet at the bus terminal so they could proceed to the mountain together. Now that I think of it, I am doing nothing Saturday and Sunday, so I will probably go with them.



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