What does ἐγκαλέω (enkaléō) mean in the Bible?
ἐγκαλέω (enkaléō): To bring a formal charge against someone in a legal or official context.
Greek · G1458
ἐγκαλέω
To accuse
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ἐγκαλέωG1458
Pronunciationenkaléō
What does ἐγκαλέω (enkaléō) mean in the Bible?
ἐγκαλέω (enkaléō): To bring a formal charge against someone in a legal or official context.
Full entry for ἐγκαλέω (G1458) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G1458?
The BSB source-word alignment has 7 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include [against] (1), [that] I am accused (1), being charged (1), Let them bring charges against (1), the accusation (1).
Where does ἐγκαλέω (enkaléō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Acts 19:38. Its strongest book concentrations include Acts (6), Romans (1).
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It[against]1×Acts 23:28
[that] I am accused1×Acts 26:7
being charged1×Acts 19:40
Let them bring charges against1×Acts 19:38
the accusation1×Acts 23:29
the accusations1×Acts 26:2
will bring any charge1×Romans 8:33
Show sample aligned rows
Acts 19:38ἐγκαλείτωσανtoLet them bring charges againstVerb - Present Imperative Active - 3rd Person PluralActs 19:40ἐγκαλεῖσθαιtobeing chargedVerb - Present Infinitive Middle or PassiveActs 23:28ἐνεκάλουνto[against]Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person PluralActs 23:29ἐγκαλούμενονtothe accusationVerb - Present Participle Middle or Passive - Accusative Masculine SingularActs 26:2ἐγκαλοῦμαιtothe accusationsVerb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 1st Person SingularActs 26:7ἐγκαλοῦμαιto[that] I am accusedVerb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 1st Person SingularRomans 8:33ἐγκαλέσειtowill bring any chargeVerb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowActs 19:38
Aligned rows7
Books represented2
Acts6Romans1
Source forms
ἐγκαλοῦμαι2xenkaloumaiActs 26:2, Acts 26:7
ἐγκαλεῖσθαι1xenkaleisthaiActs 19:40
ἐγκαλείτωσαν1xenkaleitōsanActs 19:38
ἐγκαλέσει1xenkaleseiRomans 8:33
ἐγκαλούμενον1xenkaloumenonActs 23:29
ἐνεκάλουν1xenekalounActs 23:28
Parsing patterns
Verb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 1st Person Singular2xActs 26:2, Acts 26:7
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular1xRomans 8:33
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural1xActs 23:28
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 3rd Person Plural1xActs 19:38
Verb - Present Infinitive Middle or Passive1xActs 19:40
Verb - Present Participle Middle or Passive - Accusative Masculine Singular1xActs 23:29
Evidence Summary
Greek word. To bring a formal charge against someone in a legal or official context.
Strong'sG1458
Lexical occurrences7 versesGreek text appearances7 timesWord forms4 forms7 referencesVerse guides0 guides
Source Gloss
to accuse
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
7 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Acts 19:38Verb Third Person Plural Present Active Imperative
ἐγκαλείτωσανegkaleitwsan
I bring a charge against, accuse
Read verseActs 19:40Verb Present Passive Infinitive
ἐγκαλεῖσθαιegkaleisqai
I bring a charge against, accuse
Read verseActs 23:28Verb Third Person Plural Imperfect Active Indicative
ἐνεκάλουνenekaloun
I bring a charge against, accuse
Read verseActs 23:29Verb Present Passive Participle Accusative Singular Masculine
ἐγκαλούμενονegkaloumenon
I bring a charge against, accuse
Read verseActs 26:2Verb First Person Singular Present Passive Indicative
ἐγκαλοῦμαιegkaloumai
I bring a charge against, accuse
Read verseActs 26:7Verb First Person Singular Present Passive Indicative
ἐγκαλοῦμαι,egkaloumai
I bring a charge against, accuse
Read verseRomans 8:33Verb Third Person Singular Future Active Indicative
ἐγκαλέσειegkalesei
I bring a charge against, accuse
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
Grammatical Forms
How mood, tense, and voice shift the force of this verb in context.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Form groups4Aligned forms7TensesPresent, Imperfect, FutureVoicesPassive, Active
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Indicativestates a fact or reality4×
Present PassiveActs 26:2 · Acts 26:72×
Imperfect ActiveActs 23:281×
Future ActiveRom 8:331×
Imperativecommand or strong request1×
Present ActiveActs 19:381×
Infinitiveverbal noun — the action in abstract1×
Present PassiveActs 19:401×
Participleverbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality1×
Present PassiveActs 23:291×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 7 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
present5imperfect1future1
Voice
passive4active3
Mood
indicative4imperative1infinitive1participle1
NT Occurrences
Acts 19:38ἐγκαλείτωσανpresent active imperativeimperativeActs 19:40ἐγκαλεῖσθαιpresent passive infinitiveinfinitiveActs 23:28ἐνεκάλουνimperfect active indicativebackgroundActs 23:29ἐγκαλούμενονpresent passive participleparticipleActs 26:2ἐγκαλοῦμαιpresent passive indicativeongoingActs 26:7ἐγκαλοῦμαιpresent passive indicativeongoingRomans 8:33ἐγκαλέσειfuture active indicativeprospective
Aspect reflects grammatical form — not authorial emphasis. Participles and infinitives are verbal adjectives and nouns respectively.
Clause data: MACULA Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0) · SBLGNT (Logos/SBL, CC BY 4.0)
Word Origins
ἐγκαλέω is built from these roots: