Have you ever had such moments when you were close to doing something, but did it differently? In English there is a construction called be about to, with which you can talk about actions that almost happened or are about to happen.
Today you will learn when to use the be about to construction and how to do it correctly.
Using the be about to construction in English
We can translate the construction be about to as “just about, a little, close, going to.”
Remembering the construction be going to (getting ready to do something), we can say that they are similar, because both of them talk about the intention to do something.
However, be going to is used when we are planning some action in the future. For example: We are going to go to the cinema. And be about to is used when talking about unplanned, spontaneous actions. For example: I'm close to getting up and leaving this boring movie.
Let's look at situations in which we use be about to:
1. When we are close to some action and are about to perform it.
For example: This child is about to cry.
She is about to leave.
She's about to leave.
The train is about to arrive.
The train is about to arrive.
2. When you almost did something, but did it differently.
For example: I almost laughed
He was about to say truth.
He was close to telling the truth.
I was about to go out when the phone rank.
I was about to leave when the phone rang.
Since we are talking about unplanned actions, this construction can only be used in the present and past tenses.
Affirmative sentences with the construction be about to in English
This construction consists of two parts: changeable (to be) and immutable (about to).
First part(verb to be) changes depending on who is doing the action.
Second part(about to) always remains the same.
Let's look at how this construction is used in the present and past tenses.
Affirmative sentences with the construction be about to in the present tense
Using the present tense construction, we say that we are close to doing something right now.
Depending on the person, our verb be changes to am, are, is. The sentence formation scheme will be as follows:
Actor + am/are/is + about to + action
| I | am | ||
| You | |||
| We | are | laugh | |
| They | about to | call | |
| She | leave | ||
| He | is | ||
| It |
The concert is about to start.
The concert is about to start.
They are about to divorce
They are close to divorce.
Affirmative sentences with the construction be about to in the past tense
Using our construction in the past tense, we say that we almost performed some action in the past. Our verb be changes to was/were depending on the person. The education scheme will be as follows:
Actor + was/were + about to + action
| I | was | ||
| You | |||
| We | were | laugh | |
| They | about to | call | |
| She | leave | ||
| He | was | ||
| It |
I was about to go to bed.
I was getting ready to go to bed.
He wasaboutto apologize.
He was close to apologizing.
Negative sentences with the construction be about to in English
This construction can also be used in negation, when we say that we did not intend to do something. Let's look at how such sentences are formed in the present and past tenses.
Negative sentences with the construction be about to in the present tense
When we say that we did not intend to do something, we add the particle not to our be. The education scheme will be as follows:
Actor + am/are/is + not + about to + action
| I | am | |||
| You | ||||
| We | are | laugh | ||
| They | not | about to | call | |
| She | leave | |||
| He | is | |||
| It |
She is not about to call him.
She's not close to calling him.
They are not about to cry.
They're not going to cry.
Negative sentences with the construction be about to in the past tense
To form a negation in the past tense, we put not after the be in the past tense. The sentence formation scheme will be as follows:
Actor + was/were + not + about to + action
| I | was | |||
| You | ||||
| We | were | laugh | ||
| They | not | about to | call | |
| She | leave | |||
| He | was | |||
| It |
He was not about to buy this.
He wasn't going to buy it.
We werenotaboutto admit our mistake.
We weren't close to admitting our mistake.
Interrogative sentences with the construction be about to in English
To ask a question, we need to put our be first. Let's look at how this will happen in the present and past tenses.
Interrogative sentences with the construction be about to in the present tense
When we ask a person if he is going to do something now, we put am/are/is first. The education scheme will be as follows:
Am/are/is + actor + about to + action?
| Am | I | ||
| you | |||
| Are | we | laugh? | |
| they | about to | call? | |
| he | leave? | ||
| Is | she | ||
| it |
Is Tom about to sing?
Is Tom going to sing?
Are you aboutto buy this dress for me?
Are you going to buy this dress for me?
Interrogative sentences with the construction be about to in the past tense
To ask a person about past actions, we need to put was/were first. The sentence formation scheme will be as follows:
Was/were + actor + about to + action?
| Was | I | ||
| you | |||
| Were | we | laugh? | |
| they | about to | call? | |
| he | leave? | ||
| Was | she | ||
| it |
Was she about to go home?
Was she close to going home?
Were they aboutto quarrel?
Were they close to fighting?
So, the be about to construction is used when you were close to taking some action, but acted differently, or when you are about to do something at the moment.
Consolidation exercise
Translate the following sentences into English:
1. She was close to going to bed.
2. They are about to tell the truth.
3. Was he close to yelling at you?
4. I wasn't going to laugh.
5. Are they about to leave the house?
6. We are about to place an order.
7. He was close to making peace with her.
8. The baby is about to cry.
Leave your answers in the comments below the article.
More meanings and translations of BE ABOUT TO DO SMTH. from English into Russian in English-Russian dictionaries.
What is and translation of BE ABOUT TO DO SMTH. from Russian into English in Russian-English dictionaries.
More meanings of this word and English-Russian, Russian-English translations for BE ABOUT TO DO SMTH. in dictionaries.
- BE ABOUT TO DO SMTH. - get ready, get ready to do something; it's almost time to start doing something.
English-Russian Dictionary of English Idioms -
-
Longman DOCE5 Extras English vocabulary -
-
New large English-Russian dictionary - - I. (|)dü, _də or +V _dəw verb (past first & third singular did (|)did, _dəd ; or nonstandard done ...
- ABOUT - I. əˈbau̇t, usu -d.+V adverb Etymology: Middle English about, abouten, from Old English abūtan, from a- (I) + būtan outside, …
Webster's New International English Dictionary - - do 1 /dooh/ ; unstressed /doo, deuh/, v. and auxiliary v., pres. sing. 1st pers. do , 2nd do ...
- ABOUT - /euh bowt"/, prep. 1. of; concerning; in regard to: instructions about the work; a book about the Civil War. …
Random House Webster's Unabridged English Dictionary - — I. ˈdü verb (did ˈdid, dəd; done ˈdən; do·ing ˈdü-iŋ; does ˈdəz) Etymology: Middle English don, …
- ABOUT — I. ə-ˈbau̇t adverb Etymology: Middle English, from Old English abūtan, from a- (I) + būtan outside — more at but …
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate English vocabulary - - noun deed; act; fear. 2. do noun a cheat; a swindle. 3. do noun ado; bustle; stir; to do. 4. …
Webster English vocab - ABOUT - adv on all sides; around. 2. about ·prep around; all round; on every side of. 3. about ·prep in concern…
Webster English vocab -
- ABOUT - / əˈbaʊt; NAmE / adverb, preposition, adjective ■ adverb 1. a little more or less than; a little...
Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary -
- ABOUT - I. a ‧ bout 1 S1 W1 /əˈbaʊt/ BrE AmE preposition 1 . concerning or relating to a particular subject: …
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - — v. & n. --v. (3rd sing. present does; past did; past part. done) 1 tr. perform, carry out, achieve, complete…
- ABOUT - prep. &adv. --prep. 1 a on the subject of; in connection with (a book about birds; what are you ...
English Basic Spoken Dictionary - — v. & n. v. (3rd sing. present does; past did; past part. done) 1 tr. perform, carry out, achieve, complete…
- ABOUT - prep. &adv. prep. 1 a on the subject of; in connection with (a book about birds; what are you ...
Concise Oxford English Dictionary - - 1.v. & n. --v. (3rd sing. present does; past did; past part. done) 1. tr. perform, carry out, achieve, …
Oxford English vocab - ABOUT - prep. &adv. --prep. 1. a on the subject of; in connection with (a book about birds; what are you ...
Oxford English vocab - — I. AUXILIARY VERB USES /də, STRONG du:/ (does, doing, did, done) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 ...
- ABOUT — Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. Note: In addition to the uses shown...
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary - ABOUT
Longman DOCE5 Extras English vocabulary - ABOUT - INDEX: 1. about a subject or person 2. to have something as the main subject RELATED WORDS talk about: ...
Longman Activator English vocab - - verb 1 DO · HAVE · MAKE · TAKE Many phrases begin with a very common very such as do, ...
Longman Common Errors English vocabulary - SMTH - to finish off someone.
Large English-Russian Dictionary - — I (full form); (reduced forms) 1. Ch.; past vr. - did, pr. past vr. - done 1) to do, perform, carry out ...
Large English-Russian Dictionary - - Ch. 1) take place as a fact, exist, happen a) exist as a fact in objective reality to be; be alive, live Tyrants...
Large English-Russian Dictionary - ABOUT
Large English-Russian Dictionary - - do.ogg _I 1. du: n (pl dos, do "s du: z) 1. colloquial deception, fraud, swindle; “prank” nothing but a ...
- - be.ogg bi: (full form); bı (reduced form) v (singular was, plural were; been; present time 1st year ...
English-Russian-English dictionary of general vocabulary - Collection of the best dictionaries - ABOUT
English-Russian-English dictionary of general vocabulary - Collection of the best dictionaries - SMTH. - abbr. from something
English-Russian Dictionary Tiger - — _I 1. du: n (pl dos, do "s du: z) 1. colloquial deception, fraud, swindle; “prank” nothing but a do ...
- - v (singular part was, plural part were; been; present time. 1st literal unit of am, 3rd literal unit of hour...
Large new English-Russian dictionary - ABOUT
Large new English-Russian dictionary - SMTH. - abbr. from something
- — I du: (full form); du, də, d (reduced forms) 1. Ch. ; past vr. - did, pr. ...
English-Russian dictionary of general vocabulary - ABOUT - 1. adv. 1) around; everywhere He was nowhere about. - He was nowhere to be found. There was a lot of gossip about concerning…
English-Russian dictionary of general vocabulary - SMTH. - abbr. from something
- — I [¬ѓ] (full form); [¬Ќ], [¬†], [¬] (reduced forms) do.wav 1. Ch.; past vr. - did, pr. past vr. - done 1) a) ...
English-Russian dictionary of general vocabulary - ABOUT - 1. adv. 1) around; everywhere He was nowhere about. - He was nowhere to be found. There was a lot of gossip about concerning his affairs. -...
English-Russian dictionary of general vocabulary - — _v. _p. _sg. was, _pl. were; _p-p. been 1> to be, exist 2> to be; to happen; where are my books? - Where …
- ABOUT
Muller's English-Russian Dictionary - 24th edition - — v. p. sg. was, pl. were; p-p. been 1. to be, exist 2. to be; to happen; where are my books? - Where …
Muller's English-Russian Dictionary - editor bed
Meaning and usage of "to be about to" in English.
Construction to be about to
Everyone knows that English is a language of expressions, and there are so many of them that we are constantly discovering new ones. We need to know expressions so that our speech sounds like the speech of a true Englishman who uses certain expressions, and does not sound tritely illiterate and primitive. Expressions can be divided into different categories - modal, verbal, idioms and others. We will look at an expression that has a hint of modality because it expresses intention—we are talking about “ to be about to”, - and then compare its use with other expressions of similar meaning.
The structure of the structure “to be about to”
If you already know a little English, then one glance at this construction will be enough for you to understand how we will change it by person and use it in a sentence so that it acquires the meaning we need. Like all constructions, we can divide “to be about to” into a moving part, which, in fact, will be modified (in this case it is the verb to be - we will need its forms in the present and past tense), and into a fixed part - this about to.
about in this case it is not a preposition, but an adjective. Since the expression ends with a particle to, must be followed by a verb in the initial form. Let's try to make a sentence and translate it:
- I was about to call you, but you came to my place - I was about to call you, but you came to me.
If the person of the subject changes, the auxiliary verb will change accordingly:
- We were about to divorce but changed our minds - we almost separated, but then changed our minds.
As for the interrogative and negative forms, we form them standardly, as befits a construction in which to be- auxiliary:
- Was she about to accept his invitation? – Was she close to accepting his invitation?
- I think, they weren’t about to quarrel, when I came in – I think when I came in, they weren’t going to quarrel.
Use of the construction “to be about to”
Since we have figured out how to use this construction correctly, let’s move on to the main part - when exactly it should be used. If you carefully read the above examples, you could not help but notice that in all cases we were talking about an action that is the subject of the sentence intended execute. He, she or they were very close to performing the action (as evidenced by words such as " exactly», « it was almost», « were close to something"), but they never implemented it. Thus, we can say that the design “ to be about to” we need to emphasize that we are about to perform some action, we are very close to it.
Unlike other modal constructions that express the intention to do something, “to be about to” is mainly associated with our spontaneous, unplanned actions, which we often perform under the influence of emotions - both positive and negative:
- When I heard his story I was about to laugh - When I heard his story, I almost laughed.
- He was so angry that was about to shout at me - He was so angry that he would have shouted at me a little more.
- The poor child is about to cry, give his toy back to him – The poor child is about to cry, give him his toy back.
- I am about to get annoyed with this dull music – I’m almost annoyed by this monotonous music.
Since the construction “to be about to” expresses an unplanned action, it occurs only in the present and past tense - we don’t know what we suddenly want to do in the future.
Let’s compare “to be about to” with other constructions expressing intention:
- I am going to pay for your dinner - I am going to pay (will pay) for your lunch (deliberate action)
- We have made up our minds to get married - we decided to get married (thought carefully and decided)
Here is a short text that shows the nuances of the use of different constructions.
Yesterday I made up my mind to visit a dentist. I was going to have my tooth extracted. When I approached the surgery and was about to open the door I heard a yell and at that moment my heart was in my mouth. I was about to turn back but my toothache was so terrible that I had no choice but go there.
Yesterday I decided to go to the dentist. I was going to pull a tooth. When I approached the doctor's office and was about to open the door, I heard a scream, and at that moment my soul sank into my heels. I was about to leave, but the toothache was so bad that I had no choice but to go there.
To determine how much you understand how to use the studied construction in speech, we suggest you take a short test “to be about to do smth. / to be going to do smth.”
Post provided by the site “Secrets of the English Language”
» Construction “to be about to”
√ be about
√ be about
√ be down
√ be for be down
√ be off be on
√ be out
√ be with (sb)
be about
nearby, to be nearby, to be nearby
Tim and Tom are somewhere about.
be about (to do sth) going to do sth. To be on the point of doing sth
They were just about to call when Mirra telephoned,
be after
1) (sb) try to catch someone, pursue, to chase: The dog was after cat. ;
2) (sth) to strive to take possession of something, to encroach on something, to want, to try to gain
They're after jobs at his place.
Let’s assume that those gangs are really after jewelry and perpetrator
be against
to be opposed to (often used with gerund)
I was against going out till the mother arrive.
be away,
to be absent, to be away from home/ I his place as much as a night
they'll have to come again. The doctor has been away on business.
be back return to (have) retum(ed)
They have to leave now, but they’ll be back soon.
be down
1. to be downstairs (no longer upstairs)
He is not down yet. (He has not finished dressing, etc.)
Is he up yet? - Yes, he is up (out of bed) and down (from the dressing room).
2. be not in the capital, in the province, on the periphery Have you been down to see Robin Hill?
3. to go down, to go down, to be lowered (of blinds, curtains).
The blinds are down.
4. to set (about the sun) to set (of sun)
The sun was nearly down.
5. decrease in volume, quantity, decrease (about prices) to decrease in amount
The yield of cotton is down compared with last year.
6. weaken, subside, calm down to decrease in intensity (of wind, temperature, etc.)
The wind is down.
The sea is down (is not rough).
2. be down (with) to have or catch an illness The Roans was down with angina.
be for to be for or stand to be in favor of (It is often used with gerund)
The Roams were for doing nothing untill the police arrived.
be in
Indoors, at work, to be at home, to be in this building/at home
Is Mr Baxter in?
be in for
to be waiting for smth. (especially unpleasant) to expect sth (usually. bad)
People were in for a storm. Thunderstorms cannot be avoided.
Victor and Nick are in for a rude awakening. Victor and Nick will be bitterly disappointed.
be off
1) to leave, to leave I must be off.
The train is off.
2) to be free from work I am off for the afternoon today.
3) to be cancelled, finished
The meeting is off.
4) to be turned off (electricity, water, etc.) to be no longer on
The electricity was off yesterday,
be on
1) turned on, to be lit, to burn (about light, gas, etc.) to be switched on
All the lights in the rooms were on.
2) demonstrated (about a film, about a performance); go to be shown (of plays, films)
There is a good show on at our club.
3) to happen, to take place to be happening, to take place What’s going on (What’s on?, what’s happening?)
The exhibition will be on next week,
be out
1) not be at work; Houses; not to be at one’s home, office
They are out currently.
They were out at the pictures.
2) to be switched off, to go out (about light, gas, etc.)
The fire is out.
3) become famous; to reveal, to become known, to be revealed
It's useless trying to keep it back. The news will be out anyway.
4) go out of print to be published My book is out at last.
(of) not to have, to lack, to be lacking of something; short of something
The money is out.
I'm out of cigarettes.
be over
end, end to come to an and The rain was over then; They could go.
be through (with)
to finish something, to finish something. or smb. to have finished (a relationship, job, etc.)
The Browns are through with their work.
We are through with that perpetrator.
be up
1. to be on your feet, to be awake, to wake up; stand up; to be out of bed
We are always up at eight o'clock.
2. stay up late, stay awake not to go to bed (usu. late); stay up
They've been up with her all night.
3. rise, be raised to be lifted, to have risen The blinds are up.
4. be in the center, in the capital, in the city (as opposed to the countryside)
My dear Nick - She has to be up in town tomorrow.
5. rise, achieve a high position to rise The shares are up today.
He is up in the world now.
6. expire (of time, holiday, agreement)
Time is up.
Their leaves are up.
happen, happen to be going on (usu. interrog.) What’s up? What happened?, What's the matter?
Something is up. Something happened. Something's happening
be up to
1. to start something, to plan something. to do (usu. sth wrong)
What are the children up to?
I’m going to tell his parents what he’s been up to.
2. to be on the level, to be equal to Victor was not up to her mother as a scholar.
We're quite up to the post, Mr Brown.
3. depend on someone, be entrusted to someone. (about responsibility), to depend on; to be one's duty or responsibility
It’s up to my sons to take action on making a design.
They have helped us as much as they can. Now it's up to her. (She must continue by her own efforts.)
4. be able to smth. to do to be physically capable of doing sth
I"m sorry, but I’m so tired that I am really not up to going to the theater with you tonight.
be with (sb)
1) support smb. to support sb I’ll be with you in all your misfortunes.
2) understand; follow what they say to be able to understand what sb is talking about
Are they with her?
She is afraid Her brother is not quite with you.
be with (somebody, something) to work somewhere, for someone. (for hire)
They are with a shipping company.
She’s been with a touring company for three years.
Exercises: 1 , 2 , 3
1. Fill in the correct adverb(s). Translate the sentences.
1. The decision’s not......our"s, it's......her manager.
2. He wants to see Mr Grimm. Is he...? - No, I’m afraid he’s ... currently. (or No, I’m afraid he’s ... for the holiday.) - When will she be ...? - She'll be... in half
an hour/next week.
3. Don’t wait for him to answer the doorbell at nine o’clock on Saturday morning. He won't be...
4. As soon as the examiners are... they are going away at the weekends.
5. Will he marry her? - It’s......him. We can’t very well decide for him.
6. He wanted to do all his work himself but we don’t think he is......it.
7. He is......a shock.
8. What have you been......? Where have you been? What will Mama think?
9. We "re ... saying nothing and keeping quiet.
10. The light is....
11. The water is...
12. I’ve been ... this firm for five years.
13. It was......Roger to make sure all the windows and doors were locked.
14.I’d better be .... I’m afraid I might be late.
15. We hired a boat for an hour and when the time was..., we returned it
16. We’re all... you one hundred per cent.
17. I can never make him out. I wonder what he is......
18.She has just seen us. They must be somewhere....
19. The foresters are ... now; they"re making their rounds.
20.We knew them well enough to guess by the look on their face that they were...... something.
23. They saw their Mother looking angrily out of the broken window, and they knew they were ... ... it.
24. He looks guilty. What do you think he’s been......? 25. He’s ... in the guests’ room.
26. I’ve done what I could. It’s ......you to make a choice now.
27. The freezer was...; all the food would spoil.
28. We are......cold winter.
29. The kids are very quiet. Are they...... something?
30. When will you be...? I want to know in case somebody rings up.
31. They"ve been ... their job once or three times he knows, but he doesn’t think it was from sickness.
32. Sarah’s ... in India somewhere.
33. The wedding is ....
34. What's...TV?
35. He was without electricity for five hours but it was ... again now.
36. There was a war... at the time.
37. I’m nearly ... with the book.
38. The prices are ... now.
39. Time's... . Stop writing and hand in your papers.
40. I could tell something was ... by the looks on their faces.
41 That’s the very number we’re ....
42. He was ... on business.
43. I’m all... seeing as much as possible.
44. Tom was ... at once.
45. The radio was ... the whole day.
46. The light was ... in the basement.
47. This lamp has been ... since eleven.
48. The strike's ....
49. All is... between us.
50. They are ... with the job.
51. His contract’s ... at the end of the season.
52. I was just ... to ask you the same thing.
54. Joe had seen her that afternoon after the news was ... .
55. The birthrate is very much....
56. The temperature is....
57.I had just been... with fever.
58. I’ll be... in half an hour. Wait form.
59. We're... of milk.
60. Will you get me some matches? My pipe's....
61. We’re going ... to New York for the day.
2. Translate into English.
1. When he called, they told him that I was not there, I went out.
2. The concert ended before nine o'clock.
3. The train has left.
4. The strike continues.
5. They were aiming for her place.
6. She is after his money.
7. Who is in favor of going home by train?
8. I am against inviting him to his birthday.
9. The boys are up to something.
10. The first half of Sunday they were busy.
11. He said that the trip would not take place.
12. The light is off.
13. The water is turned off.
14. They turned off all the lights (there was full illumination, all the lamps were on).
15. Then that new feature film was shown on TV two days ago.
16. What was on at the cinema (theater) yesterday?
17. The police were chasing him.
18. He can't do his job.
19. He must be somewhere nearby. Look for it in the garden.
20. Hand in your work. Time is up.
21. “You never know what this child will do in a minute,” said the grandmother angrily.
22. It is the duty of parents to raise their children properly.
23. I was not at home. I went to the cinema.
24. On the day I called him, he was not working.
25. No wonder she feels tired. She has been on her feet since six o'clock in the morning.
26. Wait for me at the elevator. I'll be there in ten minutes.
27. “I see what you’re up to,” said Tom. “In any case, I will support you.”
28. I wonder why he refused to explain his behavior; now he will be reprimanded.
29. I am in favor of starting renovations in April.
30. The fire went out.
31. The game is on.
32. The car was working.
33. Are you following her train of thought or should she repeat it again?
34. I work for an insurance company.
35. I am not able to clean the apartment today.
36. What's happening to him? He's furious.
37. Shall we have lunch in a restaurant or at home? - You decide for yourself.
38. I finished the article. 39. To marry or not is their business.
40. They will go with her to the end.
41. You won’t be able to see him this week. He's away.
42. The car is not in order. Look what's wrong.
43. This year the cost of bus travel will increase again.
44. The concert is over.
45. The secret is revealed.
46. Recently, prices for watches have been significantly reduced.
47. Will you give me some matches? - Sorry, I don't have any matches today.
48. He really wants to get this position.
49. The sun has set (set).
50. The curtains are down.
51. Bread has fallen in price.
Turnover to be about to widely used in colloquial speech. Its main meaning is that an action is about to happen. Using this phrase will make your speech more natural. Let's take a closer look at the cases in which it is used.
Turnover values to be about to
The design is used in three cases:
- When you need to say that a certain action will happen very soon (affirmative form). In Russian, in this case, they say “just about.”
She is about to leave. “She’s about to leave.”
2. When you need to express confidence that an action will not happen (negative form)
I 'm not about to do that! – I’m not going to do that!
3. When you need to say that something almost happened in the past (affirmative form of the past tense).
Mike was about to kiss Kathy but snowed. – Mike was about to kiss Katie, but he sneezed.
In meaning and construction, the turnover is very similar to the construction, but the latter has a broader meaning. If used only to indicate an action that is about to happen, then to be going to mainly to indicate a planned action. The variable part of the turnover is.
Let's take a closer look at how sentences with this phrase are constructed, and also give examples.
Turnover to be about to in the affirmative form: the action is about to happen
In the affirmative form, the phrase means that the action is about to happen. The scheme is as follows:
Note: the part “to be about to + infinitive” forms a predicate.
Example sentences:
I am about to lose my mind. - I'm going crazy now.
The child is about to cry. - The child is about to cry.
We are about to finish. - We'll finish now.
They are about to depart. - They're about to leave.
To be about to in the negative form: this will never happen!
In negative form a particle is added not before "about". The meaning of the sentence is as follows: the speaker expresses confidence that the action will not happen. Expresses most often in the first person. In Russian, in this case, we say “I’m not going to,” for example:
I'm not going to lose! – I 'm not about to lose!
This is a bright expression characteristic of colloquial speech.
Example sentences:
I am not about to put this shirt on. - I'm not going to wear this shirt.
You are not about to give up. - You don’t even think about giving up.
He is not about to tell the truth. - He's not going to tell the truth.
We are not about to do that. - We're not going to do that.
They are not about to let us go. - They won't let us go anywhere.
Version of to be about to in the past tense: it was about to happen, but did not happen
When used in the past tense, the meaning is: past action almost happened. The sentence is constructed as in the present tense, except that the verb to be takes the form of the past tense – was or were.
Example sentences:
I was about to ask you the same thing. – I was going to ask you the same thing (but I didn’t, because you beat me to it).
John was about to give up, but you gave him the strength to find his way. – John almost gave up, but you gave him the strength to find his way.
He was about to surrender his dog to a shelter but changed his mind. – He was about to give his dog to the shelter, but changed his mind.
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