19.3. Sometime, always, and long ago
| hiyáʔ cn ʔaʔ či ʔuʔčən̓táŋ. | ‘I’ll go sometime.’ |
| hiyáʔ cn ʔaʔ či ʔuʔx̣ən̓áɬ. | ‘I always go.’ |
| hiyáʔ cn ʔaʔ kʷi kʷɬhíc. | ‘I went long ago.’ |
► 1 The word for ‘sometime’ is čən̓táŋ. Does this word look familiar? If not, you should review §18.1 and §18.2. When used to mean ‘sometime,’ it must have the ʔuʔ‑ prefix. There will be more information on this prefix in §52.1.
► 2 The word for ‘always’ is ʔuʔx̣ən̓áɬ. This word has the ʔuʔ‑ prefix, too. The root of the word is x̣ən̓ ‘all,’ and it has the suffix ‑áɬ, which means ‘times.’
► 3 Klallam has words that mean ‘once,’ ‘twice,’ ‘three times, ‘four times,’ and so on. Just as in English, there are special words in Klallam for ‘once’ and ‘twice.’ To make words meaning ‘three times’ and higher, you put the ‑áɬ suffix on the end of number words. This suffix always takes the stress, so the vowels of the roots of number words usually drop out. Here is a list of 1 through 4:
nəc̓áxʷ ‘once’
cəŋcáŋ ‘twice’
ɬxʷáɬ ‘three times’
ŋəsáɬ ‘four times’
► 4 It is possible to use this ‑áɬ suffix on numbers higher than four, but native-speaking elders think it sounds a little odd.
► 5 To use these ‘times’ words in sentences, just follow the model of ‘always.’ For example, hiyáʔ cn ʔaʔ kʷi ʔuʔɬxʷáɬ ‘I went three times.’
► 6 The word for ‘long ago’ is kʷɬhíc. This word has the root híc, which means ‘long time.’ The root can be used by itself in sentences, such as híc caʔn ‘I’ll be a long time.’
► 7 The prefix kʷɬ‑ means basically ‘already.’ This is a very useful prefix and can be put on just about any verb to add the ‘already’ meaning. Study the following:
| hiyáʔ yaʔ cn. | ‘I went.’ | |||
| kʷɬhiyáʔ yaʔ cn. | ‘I already went.’ | |||
| ʔíɬən yaʔ cn. | ‘I ate.’ | |||
| kʷɬʔíɬən yaʔ cn. | ‘I already ate.’ |
 | ƛ̓ácu u cxʷ ʔaʔ či ʔuʔčən̓táŋ. | ‘Do you go fishing sometimes?’ |
 | ƛ̓ácu cn ʔaʔ či ʔuʔx̣ən̓áɬ. | ‘I go fishing all the time.’ |
| hiswáʔ cn kʷaʔ hiyáʔəxʷ ƛ̓ácu. | ‘I’ll go along when you go fishing.’ |
| ʔə́y̓. hiyáʔ caʔ st ʔaʔ či kʷáči. | ‘Good. We’ll go tomorrow.’ |