Pag- and Pagka-: Tagalog Affixes

when, as soon as

Pag- and pagka- can be combined with a root expressing an action to mean when….

pag-alis nila	when they leave/left
pagkaalis nila	when they have/had left after they leave/left
pagbalik nila	when they return/returned
pagkabalik nila	when they have/had returned after they return/returned

The word starting with pag-/pagka- can be repeated to mean as soon as…. Na/-ng (p. 28) is placed after the first pag-/pagka- word.

pag-alis na pag-alis nila	as soon as they leave/left
pagkaalis na pagkaalis nila	as soon as they have/had left

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