κρατέω
kratéō · G2902 · Greek · 47 occurrences
Meanings
-
to hold on to, to retain in the hand, to seize
To hold on to an object
ExamplesMatthew 9:25 But when the crowd had been sent out, He entered and took her by the hand, and the girl got up.
Matthew 12:11 But He said to them, “What man is there among you who has a sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will he not take hold of it and lift it out?
Matthew 18:28 “But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe!’
-
to have power over, to control
To exercise power or force over someone or something
ExamplesMark 3:21 And when His own people heard about this, they came out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “He has lost His senses.”
Luke 24:16 But their eyes were kept from recognizing Him.
Acts 2:24 “But God raised Him from the dead, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.
-
to seize, to arrest
To take a person into custody for alleged illegal activity
ExamplesMatthew 14:3 For when Herod had John arrested, he bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip.
Matthew 21:46 And although they sought to arrest Him, they feared the crowds, since they considered Him to be a prophet.
Matthew 26:4 and they plotted together to arrest Jesus covertly and kill Him.
-
to hold, to keep, to cause to continue
To cause a state to continue, on the basis of some authority or power
ExamplesMark 7:3 (For the Pharisees and all the other Jews do not eat unless they carefully wash their hands, thereby holding firmly to the tradition of the elders;
Mark 7:4 and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they completely cleanse themselves; and there are many other things which they have received as traditions to firmly hold, such as the washing of cups, pitchers, and copper pots.)
Mark 7:8 “Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.”
-
to accomplish, to do successfully, to carry out
To be able to complete or finish, presumably despite difficulties
ExamplesActs 27:13 When a moderate south wind came up, thinking that they had attained their purpose, they weighed anchor and began sailing along Crete, closer to shore.
How it’s used In 8 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Who or what does itSubject
47 occurrences in 10 groups
- Not stated (participle) 15
- Not stated: you (more than one) 8
- Not stated: they 6
- Not stated (infinitive) 6
- αὐτόςhe, she, it, same 3
- Not stated: he, she or it 3
- Other words · 4 groups that occur once or twice (6) 6
What it acts on, or what is saidObject
43 occurrences in 23 groups
- αὐτόςhe, she, it, same 10
- χείρhand 5
- ἸωάννηςJohn 3
- παράδοσιςteaching 3
- Other words · 19 groups that occur once or twice (23) 23
With prepositionsPrepositional phrases
4 occurrences in 4 groups
- ἐνin+ δεξιόςright 1
- ἐνin+ δόλοςdeceit, treachery 1
- ὑπόby, under+ αὐτόςhe, she, it, same 1
- ἄχριuntil+ ἥκωto come, to have come 1
With adverbsAdverbs
4 occurrences in 2 groups
- οὐnot 3
- καίand 1
Named alongside itApposition
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- περιπατέωto walk 1
What it doesIt is the subject
2 occurrences in 2 groups
- λέγωto say 1
- ἀπάγωto lead off 1
What is done to itIt is the object
6 occurrences in 4 groups
- ἔχωto have 2
- ζητέωto seek, to look for 2
- δοκέωto think, to suppose, to seem 1
- συμβουλεύωto advise 1
What it is said to bePredicate
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- δυνατόςable, possible, powerful 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Near synonyms 1 word
- πιάζω piázō · G4084 · to take hold of, to seize, to catch
- Both verbs share the sense of seizing or arresting. The target emphasizes strength and control, extending to the abstract retention of power, while πιάζω focuses on the concrete physical act of grasping — a genuine difference of scope and connotation within a shared core meaning of taking hold of something or someone by force.
In the other Testament 2 words
- חָזַק châzaq · H2388 · to be strong, to prevail, to overcome
- חָזַק (châzaq, H2388) emphasizes strengthening, holding firm, or making strong (often with connotations of courage, repair, or fortification), while κρατέω (kratéō, G2902) focuses on the exercise of strength in seizing, grasping, or retaining control over something.
- אָחַז ʼâchaz · H270 · to be held, to be caught, to be fastened
- אָחַז (ʼâchaz, H270) is the direct Hebrew equivalent rendering the core sense of physical or metaphorical grasping/seizing that κρατέω (kratéō, G2902) expresses, with both terms sharing the semantic range of taking hold, retaining possession, and exerting control over an object or person.
Semantic domains 5 entries
- To hold, to keep, to cause to continue13.34
- κρατέω can describe holding on to or keeping something. Mark 9:10 recounts that after the transfiguration, the disciples “seized upon that statement, discussing with one another what rising from the dead meant,” the ἐκράτησαν naming this keeping hold of Jesus' saying.
- To hold on to, to retain in the hand, to seize18.6
- The verb also describes physically grasping something in the hand. Matthew 9:25 recounts that Jesus “entered and took her by the hand, and the girl got up,” the ἐκράτησεν naming this taking hold of the girl's hand.
- To seize, to arrest37.110
- κρατέω can further denote forcibly seizing or arresting a person. Matthew 26:50 recounts that at Gethsemane, “they came and laid hands on Jesus and arrested Him,” the ἐκράτησαν naming this arrest of Jesus.
- To have power over, to control37.16
- The same verb can describe having power over someone or something. Acts 2:24 declares that God raised Jesus from the dead, “since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power,” the κρατεῖσθαι naming this power of death that could not control Him.
- To accomplish, to do successfully, to carry out68.29
- κρατέω can also denote successfully accomplishing or attaining a purpose. Acts 27:13 recounts that when a favorable wind arose, the sailors, “thinking that they had attained their purpose, they weighed anchor and began sailing along Crete,” the κεκρατηκέναι naming this presumed accomplishing of their intended course.
Word family 16 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Also from the root κράτος
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon imperfect 2 person plural ἐκρατειτε, Mk 14:49 Tr marginal reading WH marginal reading;…
1. to have power, be powerful; to be chief, be master of, to rule: absolutely for מָלַך, Est 1:1; Est 1:1 Esdr. 4:38; ὁ κρατῶν, Wis. 14:19; οἱ κρατοῦντες, 2 Macc. 4:50; τίνος, to be ruler of one, Prov 16:32; Prov 17:2 (for מָשַׁל); Wis. 3:8; never so in the N. T.
2. to get possession of; i. e.
a. to become master of, to obtain: τῆς προθέσεως, Acts 27:13 ((Diodorus Siculus 16, 20; others) cf. Buttmann, 161 (140); on the tense, Winers Grammar, 334 (313)).
b. to take bold of: τῆς χειρός τίνος (cf. Winers Grammar, § 30, 8 d.; Buttmann, as above), Mt 9:25; Mk 1:31; Mk 5:41; Mk 9:27 L T Tr WH; Lk 8:54; τινα τῆς χειρός, to take one by the hand, Mk 9:27 R G, cf. Matthiae, § 331; τινα, to hold one fast in order not to be sent away, Acts 3:11, cf. Meyer at the passage; τούς πόδας τίνος, to embrace one's knees, Mt 28:9; tropically, τόν λόγον, to lay hold of mentally (cf. our 'catch at'; but others refer this example to 3 b. below), Mk 9:10 (join πρός ἑαυτούς with συζητοῦντες).
c. to lay hold of, take, seize: τινα, to lay hands on one in order to get him into one's power, Mt 14:3; Mt 18:28; Mt 21:46; Mt 22:6; Mt 26:4, Mt 26:48, Mt 26:50, Mt 26:55, Mt 26:57; Mk 3:21; Mk 6:17; Mk 12:12; Mk 14:1, Mk 14:44, Mk 14:46, Mk 14:49, Mk 14:51; Acts 24:6; Rev 20:2; (2 Sam 6:6; Ps 136:9); τί, Mt 12:11.
3. to hold; i. e.
a. to hold in the hand: τί ἐν τῇ δεξιά, Rev 2:1 (τῇ ἀριστερά τόν ἄρτον, Plutarch, mor., p. 99 d.).
b. to hold fast, i. e. tropically, not to discard or let go; to keep carefully and faithfully: ὁ ἔχετε, ἔχεις, Rev 2:25; Rev 3:11; τό ὄνομα μου, Rev 2:13; one's authority, τήν κεφαλήν, i. e. ἐκεῖνον ὅς ἐστιν ἡ κεφαλή, Christ, Col 2:19; τήν παράδοσιν, Mk 7:3f, 8; τάς παραδόσεις, 2 Thess 2:15; τήν διδαχήν, Rev 2:14f; also with a genitive of the thing, of blessings in which different individuals are participants: τῆς ὁμολογίας, Heb 4:14; τῆς ἐλπίδος, Heb 6:18 (others refer this example to 2 above) (cf. 2 Sam 3:6).
c. to continue to hold, to retain: of death continuing to hold one, passive Acts 2:24; τάς ἁμαρτίας (opposed to ἀφίημι), to retain sins, i. e. not to remit, Jn 20:23; to hold in check, restrain: followed by ἵνα μή, Rev 7:1; by τοῦ μή (Winers Grammar, 325 (305); Buttmann, § 140, 16 β.), Lk 24:16. On the construction of this verb with the genitive and accusative, cf. Matthiae, § 359f; Winers Grammar, § 30, 8 d.; Buttmann, 161 (140).
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (1889), public domain
Topical studies with this word 5 entries
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
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