One-Point English Lesson: Using “Be About To”
When an activity or an action is going to happen in very soon from now, you can use the expression be about to + base verb.
- The lights just went off. The concert is about to start!
- It’s almost 8:00pm. My favorite TV program is about to begin.
- Jack put on his jacket. It looks like he is about to leave the office.
You can also use was about to + base verb with when to talk about two events that happened close to each other in the past. The event following when is generally an unexpected event.
- I was about to cook dinner when the phone rang.
- My favorite TV program was about to begin when the power went out.
- Jack was about to leave the office when the boss asked him to have a meeting.
What are you about to do right now? Leave a comment here and let me know.
If you know anyone who has trouble with this English language point, why not help them out! Just share this lesson with them.
Thanks for studying today!
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about 6 months ago
Hi,
Here is my question,
I thought you can’t use “be about to” when you are talking about an action which doesn’t happen in everyday life. So you can say ” I was about to call you,” or ” I was about to leave,” but you cant say “I was about to catch a cold.” Is that right? so how about “the concert is about to start?”
about 6 months ago
Hi Kana,
Great question. We generally use “be about to” for voluntary actions, in other words, those actions that we decide to do. We don’t use “be about to” when we talk about involuntary actions (like “I was about to catch a cold”) or those related to stative verbs (like “I was about to love you”). We also use “be about to” when we talk about events beginning and ending (like “the meeting is about to start”) or transportation (like “the train is about to depart”).
about 6 months ago
I’m about to sleep ,when my Baby start crying.
My Mother was about to 36 , when she died.
about 6 months ago
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