kneifen

Etymology
Derived from earlier, from , from , from. Cognate with 🇨🇬.

The form with -f- is an adaptation to the High German consonantism, for which there may have been rare antetypes in northern dialects of Central German, but which was chiefly artificial. remained predominant until the earlier 19th century, but was somewhat informal. The more standard-looking then fully established itself in written German and displaced  by the mid-20th century.

Verb

 * 1)  to pinch, to squeeze
 * 2)  to chicken out; to back out; to shirk