now vs what

now

adv
  • Used to introduce a point, a qualification of what has previously been said, a remonstration or a rebuke. 

  • Used to indicate a context of urgency. 

  • Sometimes; occasionally. 

  • Used to address a switching side, or sharp change in attitude from before. (In this usage, now is usually emphasized). 

  • At the present time. 

  • At the time reached within a narration. 

  • Differently from the immediate past; differently from a more remote past or a possible future; differently from all other times. 

conj
  • Since, because, in light of the fact; often with that. 

noun
  • The state of not paying attention to the future or the past. 

  • The present time. 

  • A particular instant in time, as perceived at that instant. 

intj
  • Indicates a signal to begin. 

adj
  • Fashionable; popular; up to date; current. 

  • Present; current. 

what

adv
  • Used before a prepositional phrase to emphasise that something is taken into consideration as a cause or reason; usually used in combination with 'with' (see what with), and much less commonly with other prepositions. 

  • In what way; to what extent. 

intj
  • Indicating a guess or approximation, or a pause to try to recall information. 

  • An expression of surprise or disbelief. 

  • What! That’s amazing! 

  • What did you say? I beg your pardon? 

  • What do you want? An abrupt, usually unfriendly enquiry as to what a person desires. 

pron
  • That which; those that; the thing(s) that. 

  • That; which; who. 

  • Anything that; all that; whatever. 

  • Which thing, event, circumstance, etc.: used in asking for the specification of an identity, quantity, quality, etc. 

det
  • Any ... that; all ... that; whatever. 

  • Used to form exclamations. 

  • Which, especially which of an open-ended set of possibilities. 

  • Emphasises that something is noteworthy or remarkable in quality or degree, in either a good or bad way; may be used in combination with certain other determiners, especially 'a', less often 'some'. 

  • Which; the ... that. 

particle
  • Emphasizes the truth of an assertion made to contradict an evidently false assumption held by the listener. 

noun
  • Something that is addressed by what, as opposed to a person, addressed by who. 

  • The identity of a thing, as an answer to a question of what. 

How often have the words now and what occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )