kneifen

to pinch, to back out, to chicken out

ˈk n a ɪ̯ f ə n

kneif to pinch + en Infinitive

verb · 1st-person plural / 3rd-person plural, present tense Rare #43,728

to pinch

GE: Bitte kneifen Sie mich nicht.

EN: Please don’t pinch me.

to back out, to chicken out Informal when used to mean backing out of something.

GE: Du darfst jetzt nicht kneifen.

EN: You can’t chicken out now.

Conjugation of kneifen

kneifen

Indicative present

	Singular	Plural
First	—	kneifen
Third	—	kneifen

Subjunctive present

	Singular	Plural
First	—	kneifen
Third	—	kneifen

Indicative past

	Singular	Plural
First	kniff	—
Third	kniff	—

Past

You can't back out now!

— Yojimbo - Der Leibwächter (1961)

And now you want to chicken out!

— Kikis kleiner Lieferservice (1989)

Please pinch me!

He will pinch my cheek.

— Die Braut des Prinzen (1987)

Stop pinching Maxence!

— Blau ist eine warme Farbe (2013)