תָּנוּ רַבָּנַן: ״הֲרֵי אַתְּ אִשְׁתִּי״, ״הֲרֵי אַתְּ אֲרוּסָתִי״, ״הֲרֵי אַתְּ קְנוּיָה לִי״ – מְקוּדֶּשֶׁת. ״הֲרֵי אַתְּ שֶׁלִּי״, ״הֲרֵי אַתְּ בִּרְשׁוּתִי״, ״הֲרֵי אַתְּ זְקוּקָה לִי״ – מְקוּדֶּשֶׁת. וְלִיתְנִינְהוּ כּוּלְּהוּ כַּחֲדָא! תַּנָּא תְּלָת תְּלָת, שַׁמְעִינְהוּ וְגַרְסִינְהוּ. אִיבַּעְיָא לְהוּ: ״מְיוּחֶדֶת לִי״ מַהוּ? ״מְיוֹעֶדֶת לִי״ מַהוּ? ״עֶזְרָתִי״ מַהוּ? ״נֶגְדָּתִי״ מַהוּ? ״עֲצוּרָתִי״ מַהוּ? ״צַלְעָתִי״ מַהוּ? ״סְגוּרָתִי״ מַהוּ? ״תַּחְתַּי״ מַהוּ? ״תְּפוּשָׂתִי״ מַהוּ? ״לְקוּחָתִי״ מַהוּ? פְּשׁוֹט מִיהָא חֲדָא, דְּתַנְיָא: הָאוֹמֵר ״לְקוּחָתִי״ – הֲרֵי זוֹ מְקוּדֶּשֶׁת, מִשּׁוּם ״שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר כִּי יִקַּח אִישׁ אִשָּׁה״. אִיבַּעְיָא לְהוּ: ״חֲרוּפָתִי״ מַהוּ? תָּא שְׁמַע, דְּתַנְיָא: הָאוֹמֵר ״חֲרוּפָתִי״ – מְקוּדֶּשֶׁת, שֶׁכֵּן בִּיהוּדָה קוֹרִין לָאֲרוּסָה ״חֲרוּפָה״. וִיהוּדָה הָוְיָא רוּבָּא דְּעָלְמָא? הָכִי קָאָמַר: הָאוֹמֵר ״חֲרוּפָתִי״ – מְקוּדֶּשֶׁת, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״וְהִיא שִׁפְחָה נֶחֱרֶפֶת לְאִישׁ״. וְעוֹד, בִּיהוּדָה קוֹרִין לָאֲרוּסָה ״חֲרוּפָה״. וִיהוּדָה וְעוֹד לִקְרָא? אֶלָּא הָכִי קָאָמַר: הָאוֹמֵר ״חֲרוּפָה״ בִּיהוּדָה – מְקוּדֶּשֶׁת, שֶׁכֵּן בִּיהוּדָה קוֹרִין לָאֲרוּסָה ״חֲרוּפָה״. בְּמַאי עָסְקִינַן? אִילֵימָא בְּשֶׁאֵין מְדַבֵּר עִמָּהּ עַל עִסְקֵי גִּיטָּהּ וְקִידּוּשֶׁיהָ – מְנָא יָדְעָה מַאי קָאָמַר לַהּ? וְאֶלָּא בִּמְדַבֵּר עִמָּהּ עַל עִסְקֵי גִּיטָּהּ וְקִידּוּשֶׁיהָ – אַף עַל גַּב דְּלָא אָמַר לָהּ נָמֵי, דִּתְנַן: הָיָה מְדַבֵּר עִם אִשָּׁה עַל עִסְקֵי גִּיטָּהּ וְקִידּוּשֶׁיהָ, וְנָתַן לָהּ גִּיטָּהּ וְקִידּוּשֶׁיהָ וְלֹא פֵּירֵשׁ – רַבִּי יוֹסֵי אוֹמֵר: דַּיּוֹ. רַבִּי יְהוּדָה אוֹמֵר: צָרִיךְ לְפָרֵשׁ. וְאָמַר רַב הוּנָא אָמַר שְׁמוּאֵל: הֲלָכָה כְּרַבִּי יוֹסֵי! אָמְרִי: לְעוֹלָם בִּמְדַבֵּר עִמָּהּ עַל עִסְקֵי גִּיטָּהּ וְקִידּוּשֶׁיהָ, וְאִי דְּיָהֵיב לַהּ וְשָׁתֵיק הָכִי נָמֵי, הָכָא בְּמַאי עָסְקִינַן דִּיהַב לַהּ וַאֲמַר לַהּ בְּהָנֵי לִישָּׁנֵי, וְהָכִי קָא מִיבְּעֵי לֵיהּ: הָנֵי לִישָּׁנֵי לְקִידּוּשֵׁי קָאָמַר לַהּ, אוֹ דִילְמָא לִמְלָאכָה קָאָמַר לַהּ? תֵּיקוּ.
The Sages taught in a baraita that if a man says to a woman: You are hereby my wife, or: You are hereby my betrothed, or: You are hereby acquired to me, then she is betrothed. If he said to her: You are hereby mine, or: You are hereby under my authority, or: You are hereby bound to me, then she is betrothed. The Gemara asks: But as the halakha is that she is betrothed with regard to both sets of statements, let the baraita teach all of them together. Why does the baraita divide these statements into two groups? The Gemara answers: The tanna heard them as two sets of three, and consequently he taught them in that form. He heard each sequence of three cases as a separate halakha from his teachers, and therefore he preserved them as two sets of three. A dilemma was raised before the Sages: If a man betrothing a woman said: You are hereby unique to me, what is the halakha? Is this woman betrothed? Similarly, if he said to her: You are hereby designated to me, what is the halakha? If he said: You are hereby my helper, what is the halakha? If he said: You are hereby my counterpart, what is the halakha? If he said: You are hereby my gathered one, what is the halakha? If he said: You are hereby my rib, what is the halakha? If he said: You are hereby my closed one, what is the halakha? If he said: You are hereby beneath me, what is the halakha? If he said: You are hereby my seized one, what is the halakha? Finally, if he said: You are hereby my taken one, what is the halakha? The Gemara suggests: Resolve at least one of these dilemmas, as it is taught in a baraita: With regard to one who says to a woman: You are hereby my taken one, she is betrothed, because it is stated: “When a man takes a woman” (Deuteronomy 24:1). A dilemma was raised before the Sages: If a man says to a woman: You are hereby my espoused one [ḥarufati], what is the halakha? Come and hear, as it is taught in a baraita that with regard to one who says: You are hereby my espoused one, she is betrothed, as in Judea they call a betrothed woman a ḥarufa, an espoused woman. The Gemara asks: And is Judea most of the world? Even if this is true in Judea, why should a halakha that applies in all locations be based on this local custom? The Gemara answers that this is what the baraita is saying: With regard to one who says: You are hereby my espoused one, she is betrothed, as it is stated: “Who is a maidservant espoused [neḥerefet] to a man” (Leviticus 19:20). This verse means that she is betrothed to a certain man. And furthermore, the baraita adds another proof for this claim: In Judea they call a betrothed woman a ḥarufa, an espoused woman. The Gemara asks: And is it reasonable to introduce the custom in Judea with the term: And furthermore, as proof to a halakha derived from a verse? Rather, the Gemara explains that this is what the baraita is saying: With regard to one who says: You are hereby espoused, in Judea, she is betrothed, as in Judea they call a betrothed woman a ḥarufa, an espoused woman. The Gemara asks a general question with regard to all the previously mentioned expressions: With what are we dealing? If we say that these dilemmas are referring to a case where he was not speaking with her about matters of her bill of divorce or her betrothal, but suddenly issued this statement to her, from where does she know what he is saying to her? Out of context, these statements are not necessarily referring to betrothal. Rather, they are referring to a case where he was speaking to her about matters of her bill of divorce and her betrothal. But if so, even though he did not say anything, she would also be betrothed if he gave her money for the purpose of betrothal. As we learned in a mishna (Ma’aser Sheni 4:7): If one was speaking with a woman about matters of her bill of divorce or her betrothal, and he gave her a bill of divorce or her betrothal, i.e., the money or a document of betrothal, but did not clarify his action, Rabbi Yosei says: This is sufficient for him, i.e., it is a valid divorce or betrothal because she will understand his intention from the context. Rabbi Yehuda says: He is required to clarify the meaning of his behavior. And Rav Huna says that Shmuel says: The halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yosei. If so, even if he said nothing to her she would still be betrothed, and this should certainly be the case if he says one of the statements under discussion. The Sages say in explanation of this matter: Actually, we are dealing with cases where he was speaking to her about matters of her bill of divorce and her betrothal, and if it was referring to a case where he had given her the money and been silent, so too it would have been a valid betrothal. With what are we dealing here? This is a case where he gave her something and said to her one of these expressions. And this is the dilemma raised before the Sages: These expressions, did he say them to her for the purpose of betrothal, or perhaps he said them to her for the purpose of labor? He might have intended to hire her, withdrawing his previous intention to betroth her. In other words, his statement in conjunction with his giving of an item renders the meaning of the expression less clear than if he had remained silent. The Gemara leaves most of these issues unanswered, and states that the dilemmas shall stand unresolved.