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I've been looking around and I got that the three words can mean "future". Is
there a way to differentiate them? Can they be used the same way?
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2012-01-18T20:56:13.370
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word-choice usage synonyms
Difference between [行く末]{ゆくすえ}, 将来{しょうらい} and 未来{みらい}
I was always taught that `将来【しょうらい】` was a more "tangible" future (like 5
years in the future, 10 years in the future, etc.), whereas `未来【みらい】` was more
"intagible", "unknown", and "fantastical" (like "In the future, people will
inhabit the moon"; like how people of the 50's thought life in 2000 would be).

I've never heard of `行【ゆ】く末【すえ】` until now, but it seems to correspond to my
above definition of `未来【みらい】`; more far-off and unknown.
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2012-01-18T22:24:12.463
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未来 and 将来 are pretty similar to each other. 大辞泉 breaks down the differences
[under the 用法 section of 「将来」
entry](http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/jn2/110409/m0u/%E5%B0%86%E6%9D%A5/)
(explanation translated):

> 将来 and 未来 can both be used in situations where you're talking about the time
> that will come after the present, e.g. 「将来（未来）への夢」 ("dreams for the future")
> and 「明るい将来（未来）」 ("a bright future"). 「未来」 cannot be used instead of 「将来」 in
> an expression like 「私は将来、弁護士になりたい」 ("in the future, I want to be a lawyer").
> Also, it's awkward to use 「将来」 in an expression like 「二〇〇年後の未来を空想する」
> ("imagine a future 200 years ahead of now"). If it was only 10 years later,
> 「将来」 would be more common. 「未来」 has a strong sense of a more distinct,
> intangible future. 「近い将来」 is a common expression, but 「近い未来」 is hardly ever
> said. The term 「近未来（きんみらい）」 is a recently-coined expression.

To summarize: they're very similar, but when used as an adverb, it's almost
invariably 将来, not 未来, and 未来 by default has a farther-off, less tangible
connotation.

As for 行く末, it's less common and seems to me to be a more personal sort of
future. But I'd stick with 将来 and 未来 for almost all contexts.
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2012-01-18T22:31:46.130
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Literally they should roughly mean:

**将** 来 - That which is **about to** come

**未** 来 - That which has **not yet** come

This corresponds to the other answers here that indicates that `将来` is a more
"tangible" future and `未来` being "intangible". Because for `将来` its path is
approaching you. Compare with `未来` which isn't approaching you, in fact its
kanji indicates that it will not yet come.
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2012-01-19T01:32:11.563
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