When talking about events that will happen in the future in Iñupiaq, we use the postbase +niaq that is inserted between the verb stem and the ending:
| Suviñ? | What are you doing? |
| Suniaqpiñ? | What will you be doing? |
| Niġiruŋa. | I am eating. |
| Niġiñiaqtuŋa. | I will be eating. |
When -niaq- is added to a root that ends in q-, the q changes to ġ.
| kuupiaqtuq + niaq + tuŋa = | |
| kuupiaqtuġniaqtuŋa. | I will be drinking coffee. |
| malik + niaq + tuq = | |
| maliŋniaqtuq | He / she is going to follow. |
| maligniaqtuq | He / she is going to follow. |
When -niaq- is added to a root ending in k , it changes the k to ŋ or g :
| malik + niaq + tuq = | |
| maliŋniaqtuq | He / she is going to follow. |
When +niaq is added to a root that ends in t, it changes the final t to n.
| Tavraniit +niaq +tuq = | |
| Tavraniinniaqtuq. | She/he is going to be there. |
Remember, the double n above is not just a quirk of spelling. When you pronounce this word, you have to hold the n sound for twice as long as you would single n.
Northern Iñupiaq speakers use +niaq both for events that will happen later today and those that will happen farther in the future:
| Uvlupak aullaġniaqtugut. | We will be leaving town today. |
| Uvlaaku utiġniaqtugut. | We willl be returning tomorrow. |
Finally, be aware that when starting a sentence with the idea 'when", you use different question words, depending on whether you are talking about an event in the future or in the past:
| Qakugu tikiññiaqpa? | When will she/he arrive? |
| Qaŋa tikitpa? | When did she/he arrive? |