20.2. Right now and later
| kʷɬníɬ nəshiyáʔ. | ‘I’ll go right now.’ |
| kʷkʷáʔ caʔ ʔiʔ hiyáʔ cn. | ‘I’ll go later.’ |
► 1 These are two very different patterns.
► 2 With kʷɬníɬ the event follows and the subject is indicated with the possessive pronoun on the event.
► 3 It is possible to say kʷɬníɬ cn. This means ‘I’ll do it right now.’
► 4 The word kʷɬníɬ has the root níɬ ‘it is, there are’ and the prefix kʷɬ‑ ‘already.’ So the literal meaning is ‘it already is.’
► 5 The second model shows how the word kʷkʷáʔ works. This word means something like ‘it’ll be later on,’ ‘after a while,’ ‘put it off until later,’ ‘pretty soon,’ or ‘slow down, take it easy, and do it later.’
 | ʔaʔk̓ʷín ʔay̓ ʔiʔ ʔíɬən cxʷ? | ‘What time do you eat?’ |
 | kʷɬníɬ nəsʔíɬən. ʔíɬən u caʔ cxʷ? | ‘I’ll eat right now. Will you eat?’ |
| čaʔíɬən cn ʔaʔ kʷi nəstáči. | ‘I just ate when I got here.’ |
| ʔə́y̓ u cə sʔíɬən? | ‘Is the food good?’ |