A lot of questions

[Oktay_Germany]

hello,
i have a lot of questions for you now.

are the sentences correct or in incorrect?

1. Will you visit me next year?
2. Do you visit me next year?
3. Are you visiting me next year?
4. Are you going to visit me next year?

Which sentence is correct?

[Mister Micawber]

.
All are possible for an enquiry about the future, although #2 is very odd in this circumstance.

#1-- will is the unmarked enquiry about a possible future event.

#2-- Simple present appears when there is some official schedule, natural occurrence or other force outside of everyday control that affects the future, so that here it sounds overly pompous for an individual decision to visit.

#3-- Present continuous is common in this type of inquiry, and indicates both a possible decision about the future, and an increased interest in the listener's response (continous tenses also serve to stress the speaker's interest in or concern about the topic, and therefore often express more courtesy).

#4-- The going to future is perhaps the most common in this sort of question; it does not express the speaker's feelings, but asks for the listener's decision about the future event.
_________________
Canadian-American native speaker
who teaches English for a living at Mister Micawber's
ESL cafe: Interview with Mr. Micawber

[Alan]

Hi Oktay,

You might be interested to read one of the pieces I've written showing future constructions. You can find it on the main site under the Index for ESL LESSONS headed Future.

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Womens' Day