Observation

uashau	there is a bay	uauashau	there are several bays
kau	again	kaukau	several times

The first syllable of the stem of the verb uashau there is a bay is duplicated to create a new verb uauashau that indicates that there are several bays. Similarly, the first syllable of the particle kau again is doubled to create kaukau (again, again!), several times. These are called reduplications.

Reduplication is a phonological process characteristic of Algonquian languages, where all or part of the first syllable of a word (verb or particle) is reduplicated to create a new word. The vowel in this syllable can change, depending on the type of reduplication or the dialect.

Reduplication indicates plurality or distribution in space of time (a repetition).

Here are some other examples:

uakatimiu	the channel has a curve	uauakatimiu	the channel is winding, full of curves
kuashkutu	s/he jumps	kuashkuashkutu	s/he jumps up and down, bounces
manat	with care, sparingly	mamanat	always with care, sparingly

Sometimes the first syllable of the base form and the reduplicated form differ slightly, depending on the type of reduplication:

peikᵘ	one	papeikᵘ	one each, one by one, one at a time
pessish	close by, near	papessish	closer and closer
ashikueu	s/he yells out, cries out	aiashikueu	s/he lets out cries of pain, anger; s/he meows, growls
atshipanitau	s/he causes it to move	aiatshipanitau	s/he shakes it
passueu	s/he shoots at him/her with a gun	pashpassueu	s/he shoots a gun at him/her repeatedly
kussepanu	the boat is off balance, unstable	kushkussepanu	the boat tosses about, rocks
pimamu	the road passes	papamamu	the road goes here and there
kutshipueu	s/he tastes it	kukuetshipueu	s/he tastes each one
tshissenimeu	s/he knows him/her	katshessenimeu	s/he knows several of them

For more information, see Grammaire de la langue innue chapter 22, p. 473.