Learn English – present simple for scheduled events in the near future

usageverbs

We use the present simple for scheduled events in the near future such as " I have an appointment next week". Why , then, is "My friend will pick you up at 4:00" the way we say it. Why isn't "My friend picks you up at 4:00" correct? Isn't this also a scheduled event in the near future?

Best Answer

We can use the present for scheduled events in the near future. However, we don't use the present at the time we are scheduling the events.

The sentence

My friend will pick you up at 4:00.

sounds to me like I am informing the listener of the arrangement. In this situation I would use will pick you up rather picks you up, I think because I don't consider the event to have been scheduled until the listener is informed.

On the other hand, if the listener already knows about the schedule, and we are just confirming the arrangements, I would use picks you up.

And in situations like the concert starts at 7:00, I would use the present tense regardless of whether the listener knows already, because this event is scheduled even before the listener is informed.