Was / Were going to + base verb is the most common way to express a past intention or plan that did not happen. It is formed with the past tense of be + going to + base verb — for example: "I was going to apply for the manager position, but I decided to stay." The key feature of this structure is the sense of interruption or change of plan: something got in the way, or the person simply changed their mind. It differs from the simple Past Simple because it tells us about an intention that existed before the change happened — the person had already formed the plan. For example: "She was going to enrol in the MBA programme, but the tuition fees were too high" tells us she had a real plan, not just a passing thought. Common sentence patterns include: "was/were going to ... but ..." or "was/were going to ... until ...", where the second clause explains why the intention was not fulfilled.
Would + base verb has two important uses that B1+ students must distinguish carefully. The first is Future in the Past: when you stand at a past moment and describe what you thought or knew was going to happen later — for example: "In 2010, I had no idea that I would become a software engineer." This is very common in reported speech, because will in direct speech becomes would in reported speech. The second use is Past Habit: a repeated or typical action in the past, similar in meaning to used to — for example: "Every summer, we would study together in the library." This describes something that happened regularly, not just once. The critical difference at B1+ is that would for past habits only works with action verbs (study, visit, go, work). You cannot use it with state verbs like be, have, know, like, believe. So you must say "I used to be shy" — never "I would be shy." A good test: if you can replace would with used to and the meaning stays the same, it is a past habit. If not, it is Future in the Past.
Was / were about to + base verb describes something that was on the very brink of happening — it was just seconds or moments away — when something interrupted it. It is formed with the past tense of be + about to + base verb. For example: "I was about to resign when my boss offered me a huge promotion." The action (resigning) was imminent — and then something changed everything. This structure is different from was going to in one important way: was going to describes a plan that may have existed for days or weeks, while was about to means the action was happening right then — at that specific moment. Compare: "I was going to quit next month" vs. "I was about to quit — I had my letter in my hand." It is almost always followed by when + a past simple clause to show what interrupted the action, making it a very natural storytelling structure in both spoken and written English.
Because would + verb is used for both past habits and Future in the Past predictions, B1+ students often confuse them. The context of the sentence is always the key: Future in the Past focuses on a moment in the past from which someone was looking forward and predicting something — it is about what they thought or expected. Past Habit focuses on a pattern of behaviour that was repeated regularly in the past. A reliable test is to ask: "Could I replace 'would' with 'used to' here?" If yes, it is a past habit. If replacing it with used to sounds wrong or changes the meaning, it is Future in the Past. For example: "She would visit the library every day" → "She used to visit the library every day" ✓ (Past Habit). But: "I knew she would become famous" → "I knew she used to become famous" ✗ (Future in the Past). The state verb rule remains critical: habits with state verbs such as be, have, know, love, hate, believe must use used to, never would. This is one of the most tested points at B1+/B2 level. In reported speech specifically, will always becomes would: "She said, 'I will finish the report'" → "She said she would finish the report." This is always Future in the Past, never habit.
At B1+, it is time to stop writing "He said he would..." for every reported sentence and start using descriptive reporting verbs that tell the reader how something was said and what the speaker's intention was. The three key verbs at this level are promise, claim, and suggest. Promise is used when someone committed to doing something: "The company promised they would increase salaries." It always implies a future-facing commitment, so it naturally pairs with would in reported speech. Claim is used when someone stated something as a fact, but we may have some doubt about whether it is true: "He claimed he had already finished the degree." It often pairs with Past Perfect or would depending on whether the claim is about the past or the future. Suggest is used when someone made an indirect recommendation or hint: "My mentor suggested I would find better opportunities abroad." Note that suggest cannot be followed by to + infinitive — you must use a that clause or the gerund.
When Maya finished school with top marks, everyone assumed she would study law at one of the country's best universities. She had already been accepted onto the programme and was about to confirm her enrolment when she attended a summer coding camp that changed everything. She had never imagined she would become a software developer. In those two weeks, however, she discovered a passion she had not known existed. She was going to follow the path that had been expected of her, but she could not ignore what she had found. Maya enrolled in a computer science degree instead. It was not an easy decision — her parents had been saving for years to support her law studies, and she had been preparing for the bar exams since the age of sixteen. But ten years later, she leads a team of forty engineers. She often says that she would never change the choice she made that summer.
1. What did everyone expect Maya to do after finishing school?
2. What was Maya doing when she decided to change her plans?
3. Why was the decision difficult for Maya?
4. What does Maya say about her decision when she looks back?
Daniel had been preparing for this interview for three weeks. He had rewritten his CV four times and had been practising his answers every evening. He was about to enter the building when he realised he had left all his printed documents on the kitchen table. He called his flatmate, who promised he would scan and email them within ten minutes. Standing in the lobby, Daniel tried to stay calm. He had been so confident the night before, but now he was certain he was going to fail. The interviewer, a woman who had worked in recruitment for twenty years, suggested that Daniel was one of the most prepared candidates she had seen that year. She claimed the position was as good as his. He was going to ask about the salary, but he decided to wait for the formal offer. Two days later, it arrived.
1. What happened just before Daniel entered the building?
2. What did Daniel's flatmate promise?
3. What did the interviewer suggest about Daniel?
4. Why did Daniel not ask about the salary during the interview?
After fifteen years as an accountant, Laura decided she needed a change. She (1) going to retrain as a nurse, but the course fees were far too high. Instead, she (2) in a part-time teaching qualification while keeping her current job.
Her manager had always (3) that she would make an excellent teacher, and her colleagues agreed. She was (4) to hand in her resignation when the school offered her a flexible contract that allowed her to work part-time during the transition.
During her training, she (5) stay late every Friday to prepare lesson plans and review her students' progress. Her tutor (6) that her accounting background would give her a unique advantage when teaching business studies. The school (7) they would offer her a permanent (8) once she had completed her qualification.
Laura has never (9) making the change. She often says it was the best (10) she ever made.