ἐπιλαμβάνομαι
to overtake
Full lexicon entry — Thayer's Greek Lexicon
From Thayer's Greek Lexicon
Where this word appears
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Verb
- An action or state-of-being word.
Tense
- Aorist
- Action viewed as a simple whole, without regard to duration — often past (perfective aspect).
- Present
- Ongoing or general action in present time (imperfective aspect).
Voice
- Middle deponent
- Middle in form but active in meaning.
- Middle or Passive deponent
- Middle/passive in form but active in meaning.
Mood
- Participle
- A verbal adjective (“writing,” “having written”).
- Indicative
- States a fact or asks a factual question (the mood of reality).
- Subjunctive
- Expresses probability, purpose, or possibility (the mood of contingency).
- Imperative
- Expresses a command or request.
- Infinitive
- A verbal noun (“to write”), unmarked for person or number.
Case
- Nominative
- The case of the subject (and the predicate nominative).
- Genitive
- The case of source, possession, or “of” — answers “whose / from what.”
Person
- 3rd person
- The one spoken about (“he / she / it / they”).
- 2nd person
- The one addressed (“you”).
Gender
- Masculine
- Grammatically masculine.
Number
- Plural
- More than one.
- Singular
- One.
Every verse where G1949 appears in the Book of Acts — 7 distinct verses. Click any verse to open its interlinear word-by-word view. Verse text shown in the World English Bible for context — . Each verse’s Greek form is shown with its reference; the English is not keyword-highlighted, since the data carries no word-level English alignment. Use “Compare translations” on any verse to read it across multiple English versions. This concordance covers the Greek New Testament; Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) occurrences of this word are not indexed here.
Acts
- Acts 9:27 ἐπιλαβόμενος aor mid.dep ptcp nom sg masc But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and declared to them how he had seen the Lord in the way, and that he had spoken to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus.
- Acts 16:19 ἐπιλαβόμενοι aor mid.dep ptcp nom pl masc But when her masters saw that the hope of their gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas, and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers.
- Acts 17:19 ἐπιλαβόμενοί aor mid.dep ptcp nom pl masc They took hold of him, and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is, which is spoken by you?
- Acts 18:17 ἐπιλαβόμενοι aor mid.dep ptcp nom pl masc Then all the Greeks laid hold on Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat. Gallio didn't care about any of these things.
- Acts 21:30 ἐπιλαβόμενοι aor mid.dep ptcp nom pl masc All the city was moved, and the people ran together. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple. Immediately the doors were shut.
- Acts 21:33 ἐπελάβετο aor mid.dep ind 3sg Then the commanding officer came near, arrested him, commanded him to be bound with two chains, and inquired who he was and what he had done.
- Acts 23:19 ἐπιλαβόμενος aor mid.dep ptcp nom sg masc The commanding officer took him by the hand, and going aside, asked him privately, "What is it that you have to tell me?"
About this entry
At a glance — auto-summarized from this page’s data, not written by a person. Every figure links to its source below. This summary describes the numbers; it doesn’t interpret them.
At its core, επιλαμβανομαι (epilambánomai) means “to overtake.” Scripture first uses it in Matthew 14:31. It turns up in 18 verses across 6 books, an uncommon footprint. The word gravitates to Acts (39%), then Luke and 1 Timothy. It shares a root with επι, επαγγελλω and επαγω. Dig into 18-verse concordance and the renderings breakdown below.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's G1949 catalogs a Greek word from the Greek New Testament.
These counts are not copied from any lexicon or concordance. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged Greek New Testament. What Lemma adds →
- 18
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 18 distinct verses.
- 6 / 27
- NT books
- The word appears in 6 of 27 New Testament books.
- #644
- by frequency
- Top 1000 most frequent Greek words (rank 644 of 5,347 Greek words by occurrence).
View all 18 occurrences in the concordance →
By section of the New Testament
By traditional corpus
Conventional, traditional groupings — biblical authorship is debated, so this is a traditional corpus grouping, not an authorship claim. Some books belong to more than one corpus (Luke is in both the Gospels and the Lukan corpus, and so on), so these shares overlap and need not total 100%. Each figure is a share of the word’s 18 distinct verses.
- Lukan (Luke–Acts) 12 verses · 67%
- Gospels 7 verses · 39%
- Pauline corpus 2 verses · 11%
- Hebrews 2 verses · 11%
How translations render this word
Counts come from each version’s own published word-to-Strong’s tagging or interlinear alignment — an approximate guide to how each version renders this word, not a word-level alignment the data otherwise carries. Because each total is that version’s own tagged count, the per-version totals vary from one another and need not match the appearance or distinct-verse counts above. These counts may also differ from a printed concordance because Lemma counts each distinctly tagged rendering and does not collapse phrase taggings into a single head-word total. This is a fixed set of word-tagged versions (KJV, ASV, BSB, ULT) and does not change with the reading translation you choose elsewhere. Each version’s license is shown beside its name below (and on Sources).
- King James Version: Took 5×, He took 3×, They took 2×
- American Standard Version: He took 3×, Took 3×, Laid hold 2×
- Berean Standard Bible: They seized 3×, Took 2×, Took hold 2×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text: Having taken hold 2×, Seizing 2×, Taking hold 2×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders G1949 across 20 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 10 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders G1949 across 21 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 11 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
Berean Standard Bible Public Domain
Renders G1949 across 16 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 9 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 1 further occurrence.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders G1949 across 21 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 15 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
Senses in Thayer's
The 1 sense Thayer's distinguishes for this word, in lexicon order (not ranked by frequency or importance). The full entry — with sub-senses — is in the Lexicon Entry tab.
- to take in addition, to lay hold of, take possession of, overtake, attain, attain to
Word origin
Derived from επι (epí) (G1909) — upon.
Forms in the corpus
The 9 distinct written forms G1949 takes in the Greek New Testament, most frequent first — each parse links to that tense’s occurrences in the concordance.
| Form | Parsing | Example | Uses |
|---|---|---|---|
| ἐπιλαβόμενος epilabómenos | Verb, Aorist, Middle deponent, Participle, Nominative, Singular, Masculine | Mark 8:23 | 5 |
| ἐπιλαβόμενοι epilabómenoi | Verb, Aorist, Middle deponent, Participle, Nominative, Plural, Masculine | Luke 23:26 | 4 |
| ἐπελάβετο epelábeto | Verb, Aorist, Middle deponent, Indicative, 3rd person, Singular | Matthew 14:31 | 2 |
| ἐπιλάβωνται epilábōntai | Verb, Aorist, Middle deponent, Subjunctive, 3rd person, Plural | Luke 20:20 | 2 |
| ἐπιλαμβάνεται epilambánetai | Verb, Present, Middle or Passive deponent, Indicative, 3rd person, Singular | Hebrews 2:16 | 2 |
| ἐπιλαβέσθαι epilabésthai | Verb, Aorist, Middle deponent, Infinitive | Luke 20:26 | 1 |
| ἐπιλαβομένου epilaboménou | Verb, Aorist, Middle deponent, Participle, Genitive, Singular, Masculine | Hebrews 8:9 | 1 |
| ἐπιλαβοῦ epilaboû | Verb, Aorist, Middle deponent, Imperative, 2nd person, Singular | 1 Timothy 6:12 | 1 |
| ἐπιλαβόμενοί epilabómenoí | Verb, Aorist, Middle deponent, Participle, Nominative, Plural, Masculine | Acts 17:19 | 1 |
Same root — word family
Other Thayer's entries built from the same root as G1949, grouped by Strong’s listed origin. These share a root / origin per the lexicon — not necessarily a shared meaning. Each links to that word’s own entry.
Derives from
Shares the same root
- επαγγελλω epangéllō G1861 to announce
- επαγω epágō G1863 to bring upon
- επαγωνιζομαι epagōnízomai G1864 to contend
- επαθροιζω epathroízō G1865 to gather together
- επαινεω epainéō G1867 to approve
- επαινος épainos G1868 approval
- επαιρω epaírō G1869 to lift up
- επαισχυνομαι epaischýnomai G1870 to be ashamed
- επαιτεω epaitéō G1871 to ask repeatedly
- επακουω epakoúō G1873 to give ear to
- επακροαομαι epakroáomai G1874 to listen to
- επαν epán G1875 after
- επαναγκες epánankes G1876 necessarily
- επαναγω epanágō G1877 to lead back
- επαναμιμνησκω epanamimnḗskō G1878 to remind
- επαναπαυομαι epanapaúomai G1879 to rest upon
- επανερχομαι epanérchomai G1880 to return
- επανισταμαι epanístamai G1881 to raise up against
- επανορθωσις epanórthōsis G1882 correction
- επανω epánō G1883 above
- επαρκεω eparkéō G1884 to avail
- επαρχια eparchía G1885 office of governor
- επαυλις épaulis G1886 farm
- επαυριον epaúrion G1887 the next day
+110 more words share this root (not shown).
Proper names from this root
People and places named from this root — a name, not an additional meaning of the word.
Compare all same-root words → Showing 4 of 137 — not the complete family. 1 of the same-root words is a proper name (a person or place). They share a root, not necessarily a meaning.
Septuagint usage
The same Greek word επιλαμβανομαι appears 38 times in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), across 36 verses in 15 books.
- 38
- LXX occurrences
- Tagged occurrences of this Greek word in the Septuagint.
- 36
- verses
- Distinct Septuagint verses containing this word.
- 15 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 15 of the 39 Old Testament books.
Sample Septuagint occurrences
- Genesis 25:26 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Exodus 4:4 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Deuteronomy 9:17 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Judges 12:6 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- 2 Samuel 13:11 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- 1 Kings 1:50 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- 2 Kings 2:12 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Job 8:15 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Psalms 34:2 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Proverbs 4:13 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Isaiah 3:6 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Jeremiah 30:30 ἐπιλαμβάνω
Septuagint occurrences (same lexeme)
Every verse where the same Strong’s number (G1949) appears in the Greek Septuagint. Verse text shown in the World English Bible for context; the Greek form is the matched word — the English is not keyword-highlighted.
- Genesis 25:26 ἐπιλαμβάνω After that, his brother came out, and his hand had hold on Esau's heel. He was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.
- Exodus 4:4 ἐπιλαμβάνω Yahweh said to Moses, "Put forth your hand, and take it by the tail." He put forth his hand, and laid hold of it, and it became a rod in his hand.
- Deuteronomy 9:17 ἐπιλαμβάνω I took hold of the two tables, and cast them out of my two hands, and broke them before your eyes.
- Deuteronomy 25:11 ἐπιλαμβάνω When men strive together one with another, and the wife of the one draws near to deliver her husband out of the hand of him who strikes him, and puts forth her hand, and takes him by the secrets;
- Judges 12:6 ἐπιλαμβάνω then said they to him, Say now Shibboleth; and he said Sibboleth; for he couldn't manage to pronounce it right: then they laid hold on him, and killed him at the fords of the Jordan. There fell at that time of Ephraim forty-two thousand.
- Judges 16:3 ἐπιλαμβάνω Samson lay until midnight, and arose at midnight, and laid hold of the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and plucked them up, bar and all, and put them on his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the mountain that is before Hebron.
- Judges 19:25 ἐπιλαμβάνω But the men wouldn't listen to him: so the man laid hold on his concubine, and brought her forth to them; and they knew her, and abused her all the night until the morning: and when the day began to spring, they let her go.
- 2 Samuel 13:11 ἐπιλαμβάνω When she had brought them near to him to eat, he took hold of her, and said to her, Come, lie with me, my sister.
- 2 Samuel 15:5 ἐπιλαμβάνω It was so, that when any man came near to do him obeisance, he put forth his hand, and took hold of him, and kissed him.
- 1 Kings 1:50 ἐπιλαμβάνω Adonijah feared because of Solomon; and he arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.
- 1 Kings 6:6 ἐπιλαμβάνω The nethermost story was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for on the outside he made offsets [in the wall] of the house round about, that [the beams] should not have hold in the walls of the house.
- 1 Kings 11:30 ἐπιλαμβάνω Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him, and tore it in twelve pieces.
- 2 Kings 2:12 ἐπιλαμβάνω Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and the horsemen of it! He saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and tore them in two pieces.
- 2 Kings 4:27 ἐπιλαμβάνω When she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught hold of his feet. Gehazi came near to thrust her away; but the man of God said, Let her alone: for her soul is vexed within her; and Yahweh has hid it from me, and has not told me.
- Job 8:15 ἐπιλαμβάνω He shall lean on his house, but it shall not stand. He shall cling to it, but it shall not endure.
- Job 16:8 ἐπιλαμβάνω You have shriveled me up. This is a witness against me. My leanness rises up against me, It testifies to my face.
- Job 30:18 ἐπιλαμβάνω By great force is my garment disfigured. It binds me about as the collar of my coat.
- Job 38:13 ἐπιλαμβάνω That it might take hold of the ends of the earth, And shake the wicked out of it?
- Psalms 34:2 ἐπιλαμβάνω My soul shall boast in Yahweh. The humble shall hear of it, and be glad.
- Psalms 47:7 ἐπιλαμβάνω For God is the King of all the earth. Sing praises with understanding.
- Proverbs 4:13 ἐπιλαμβάνω Take firm hold of instruction. Don't let her go. Keep her, for she is your life.
- Proverbs 7:13 ἐπιλαμβάνω So she caught him, and kissed him. With an impudent face she said to him:
- Isaiah 3:6 ἐπιλαμβάνω Indeed a man shall take hold of his brother in the house of his father, saying, "You have clothing, you be our ruler, And let this ruin be under your hand."
- Isaiah 4:1 ἐπιλαμβάνω Seven women shall take hold of one man in that day, saying, "We will eat our own bread, and wear our own clothing: only let us be called by your name. Take away our reproach."
- Isaiah 5:29 ἐπιλαμβάνω Their roaring will be like a lioness. They will roar like young lions. Yes, they shall roar, And seize their prey and carry it off, And there will be no one to deliver.
- Isaiah 27:4 ἐπιλαμβάνω Wrath is not in me: would that the briers and thorns were against me in battle! I would march on them, I would burn them together.
- Jeremiah 30:30 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Jeremiah 38:32 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Jeremiah 39:33 ἐπιλαμβάνω
- Jeremiah 51:23 ἐπιλαμβάνω and with you will I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock; and with you will I break in pieces the farmer and his yoke [of oxen]; and with you will I break in pieces governors and deputies.
- Ezekiel 29:7 ἐπιλαμβάνω When they took hold of you by your hand, you did break, and did tear all their shoulders; and when they leaned on you, you broke, and mad all their loins to be at a stand.
- Ezekiel 30:21 ἐπιλαμβάνω Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and, behold, it has not been bound up, to apply [healing] medicines, to put a bandage to bind it, that it be strong to hold the sword.
- Ezekiel 41:6 ἐπιλαμβάνω The side-chambers were in three stories, one over another, and thirty in order; and they entered into the wall which belonged to the house for the side-chambers round about, that they might have hold [therein], and not have hold in the wall of the house.
- Joel 2:9 ἐπιλαμβάνω They rush on the city. They run on the wall. They climb up into the houses. They enter in at the windows like thieves.
- Zechariah 8:23 ἐπιλαμβάνω Thus says Yahweh of Hosts: "In those days, ten men will take hold, out of all the languages of the nations, they will take hold of the skirt of him who is a Jew, saying, 'We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.'"
- Zechariah 14:13 ἐπιλαμβάνω It will happen in that day, that a great panic from Yahweh will be among them; and they will lay hold everyone on the hand of his neighbor, and his hand will rise up against the hand of his neighbor.
These are occurrences of the same Greek lexeme (G1949) in the Septuagint — not a translation of any one Hebrew word. The store carries no word-level Hebrew↔Greek alignment, so no Hebrew original is asserted here. Counts come from the recovered LXX Strong's tagging — high-frequency vocabulary is well covered, while rare or late forms may be untagged — so they reflect tagged occurrences and may slightly undercount.
