What does θρηνέω (thrēnéō) mean in the Bible?
θρηνέω (thrēnéō): To lament with vocal expression; distinguished from silent weeping by its audible, mournful quality
Greek · G2354
θρηνέω
To bewail
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θρηνέωG2354
Pronunciationthrēnéō
What does θρηνέω (thrēnéō) mean in the Bible?
θρηνέω (thrēnéō): To lament with vocal expression; distinguished from silent weeping by its audible, mournful quality
Full entry for θρηνέω (G2354) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G2354?
The BSB source-word alignment has 4 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include we sang a dirge (2), wail (1), wailing (1).
Where does θρηνέω (thrēnéō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 11:17. Its strongest book concentrations include Luke (2), John (1), Matthew (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 Itwe sang a dirge2×Matthew 11:17, Luke 7:32
wail1×John 16:20
wailing1×Luke 23:27
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 11:17Ἐθρηνήσαμενtowe sang a dirgeVerb - Aorist Indicative Active - 1st Person PluralLuke 7:32Ἐθρηνήσαμενtowe sang a dirgeVerb - Aorist Indicative Active - 1st Person PluralLuke 23:27ἐθρήνουνtowailingVerb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person PluralJohn 16:20θρηνήσετεtowailVerb - Future Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowMatthew 11:17
Aligned rows4
Books represented3
Matthew1Luke2John1
Source forms
Ἐθρηνήσαμεν2xEthrēnēsamenMatthew 11:17, Luke 7:32
ἐθρήνουν1xethrēnounLuke 23:27
θρηνήσετε1xthrēnēseteJohn 16:20
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 1st Person Plural2xMatthew 11:17, Luke 7:32
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural1xJohn 16:20
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural1xLuke 23:27
Evidence Summary
Greek word. To lament with vocal expression; distinguished from silent weeping by its audible, mournful quality
Strong'sG2354
Lexical occurrences4 versesGreek text appearances4 timesWord forms1 form4 referencesVerse guides0 guides
Source Gloss
to bewail
Extended definitionSource: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
To lament with vocal expression; distinguished from silent weeping by its audible, mournful quality
(θρῆνος), [in LXX chiefly for יָלַל hi., also for קַיִן pit., etc. ;]
2Trans., to bewail: with accusative of person(s), Luk.23:27.
Synonymsκλαίω, κόπτομαι, λυπέομαι, πενθέω (see Tr., Syn., lxv).
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
4 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 11:17Verb First Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
ἐθρηνήσαμενeqrhnhsamen
I wail, lament
Read verseLuke 7:32Verb First Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
ἐθρηνήσαμενeqrhnhsamen
I wail, lament
Read verseLuke 23:27Verb Third Person Plural Imperfect Active Indicative
ἐθρήνουνeqrhnoun
I wail, lament
Read verseJohn 16:20Verb Second Person Plural Future Active Indicative
θρηνήσετεqrhnhsete
I wail, lament
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 groups1Aligned forms4TensesAorist, Imperfect, FutureVoicesActive
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Indicativestates a fact or reality4×
Aorist ActiveMatt 11:17 · Luke 7:322×
Imperfect ActiveLuke 23:271×
Future ActiveJohn 16:201×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 3 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
aorist2future1
Voice
active3
Mood
indicative3
NT Occurrences
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)
Selected Scripture Witness
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Witnesses
Luke 23:26–31θρηνοῦσαιthrēnéō
Lamenting, mourning
Showing 1 selected witness from 4 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
θρηνέω is built from this root:
Part of These Phrases
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.