how to say “to back out” in Hebrew
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Suppose a young Israeli man meets a young Israeli woman and strikes up a lively conversation. After a while, the two exchange phone numbers and continue their talk, until the woman says, ?בֵּן כַּמָּה אַתָּה (ben kah-MAH/KAH-mah ah-TAH) – how old are you? When the man responds, the two realize there’s a seven-year gap between them.
A bit bashful, the woman says, אַתָּה עֲדַיִן יָכוֹל לְהִתְחָרֵט (ah-TAH ah-DAH-yeen yah-KHOHL leh-heet-khah-RET) – You can still back out – to which the man smiles confidently and says, ?לָמָּה לְהִתְחָרֵט (LAH-mah leh-heet-khah-RET?) – Why back out?
Apropos Yom Kippur’s imminent arrival, this intensive-reflexive התפעל (heet-pah-EL) verb means, literally, to regret. Had the man backed out, he would have הִתְחָרֵט (heet-khah-RET) – regretted his earlier decision. But perhaps he would be מִתְחָרֵט (meet-khah-RET) even more had he chosen to discontinue the conversation.
