What does ὀνομάζω (onomázō) mean in the Bible?
G3687 means to name, mention, or be named. In Paul, naming is not merely attaching a label.
Greek · G3687
ὀνομάζω
To name
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ὀνομάζω G3687
Pronunciation onomázō
What does ὀνομάζω (onomázō) mean in the Bible?
G3687 means to name, mention, or be named. In Paul, naming is not merely attaching a label.
Reader summary
Full entry for ὀνομάζω (G3687) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G3687?
The BSB source-word alignment has 10 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include calls on (1), derives its name (1), He also designated as (1), He designated as (1), He named (1).
Where does ὀνομάζω (onomázō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Mark 3:14. Its strongest book concentrations include Ephesians (3), Luke (2), 1 Corinthians (1), 2 Timothy (1).
What This Word Actually Means
G3687 means to name, mention, or be named. In Paul, naming is not merely attaching a label. Romans 15 uses it for places where Christ has not yet been publicly named in gospel mission. Ephesians 3 uses it for identity derived from the Father. Ephesians 5 uses it negatively for sins that should not be named among the saints as fitting their identity. The word helps teachers speak about public recognition, derived identity, and the moral boundaries of the church's witness.
It should not be used to pretend that silence solves sin, but it does show that some things must not be allowed to define the people who belong to Christ.
How the Bible Uses It
G3687 concerns naming, mentioning, or being named. Paul's use joins mission, identity from the Father, and the public holiness of the church.
- Rom.15.20
In this way I have aspired to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation.
Paul's ambition is to preach where Christ has not been named. The word marks public recognition of Christ in mission.
- Eph.3.15
From whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.
Every family in heaven and on earth is named from the Father. The word supports derived identity under God's fatherhood, not autonomous self-definition.
- Eph.5.3
But among you, as is proper among the saints, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed.
Paul says sexual immorality, impurity, and greed should not even be named among the saints. The word can mark what should not characterize the church's public identity.
Passage context
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 calls on 1× 2 Timothy 2:19
derives its name 1× Ephesians 3:15
He also designated as 1× Luke 6:13
He designated as 1× Mark 3:14
He named 1× Luke 6:14
that is named 1× Ephesians 1:21
there must not be even a hint 1× Ephesians 5:3
to invoke 1× Acts 19:13
was not known 1× Romans 15:20
who claims to be 1× 1 Corinthians 5:11
Show sample aligned rows
Mark 3:14 ὠνόμασεν to He designated as Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Luke 6:13 ὠνόμασεν to He also designated as Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Luke 6:14 ὠνόμασεν to He named Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Acts 19:13 ὀνομάζειν to to invoke Verb - Present Infinitive Active Romans 15:20 ὠνομάσθη to was not known Verb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular 1 Corinthians 5:11 ὀνομαζόμενος to who claims to be Verb - Present Participle Middle or Passive - Nominative Masculine Singular Ephesians 1:21 ὀνομαζομένου to that is named Verb - Present Participle Middle or Passive - Genitive Neuter Singular Ephesians 3:15 ὀνομάζεται to derives its name Verb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular Ephesians 5:3 ὀνομαζέσθω to there must not be even a hint Verb - Present Imperative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular 2 Timothy 2:19 ὀνομάζων to calls on Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Mark 3:14
Aligned rows 10
Books represented 7
Mark 1 Luke 2 Acts 1 Romans 1 1 Corinthians 1 Ephesians 3 2 Timothy 1
Source forms
ὠνόμασεν 2x ōnomasen Luke 6:13, Luke 6:14
ὀνομάζειν 1x onomazein Acts 19:13
ὀνομαζέσθω 1x onomazesthō Ephesians 5:3
ὀνομάζεται 1x onomazetai Ephesians 3:15
ὀνομαζόμενος 1x onomazomenos 1 Corinthians 5:11
ὀνομαζομένου 1x onomazomenou Ephesians 1:21
ὀνομάζων 1x onomazōn 2 Timothy 2:19
ὠνόμασεν 1x ōnomasen Mark 3:14
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 3x Mark 3:14, Luke 6:13, Luke 6:14
Verb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular 1x Romans 15:20
Verb - Present Imperative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular 1x Ephesians 5:3
Verb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular 1x Ephesians 3:15
Verb - Present Infinitive Active 1x Acts 19:13
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular 1x 2 Timothy 2:19
Verb - Present Participle Middle or Passive - Genitive Neuter Singular 1x Ephesians 1:21
Verb - Present Participle Middle or Passive - Nominative Masculine Singular 1x 1 Corinthians 5:11
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Ask whether naming is serving gospel witness, received identity, or moral warning in the passage.
- Keep public holiness connected to belonging to Christ rather than mere reputation management.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not use G3687 to suggest that refusing to mention sin is the same as dealing with it. Ephesians 5 calls for holiness, not denial.
- Do not make naming language autonomous self-definition. Ephesians 3 roots naming in the Father.
Passage contexttheological_synthesis
Evidence Summary
Greek word. To name or call someone by name, emphasizing public identification and formal designation rather than mere mention.
Strong's G3687
Lexical occurrences 9 verses Greek text appearances 10 times Word forms 4 forms 9 references Verse guides 0 guides
Study link Ephesians 1:20-23 Source Gloss
to name
Extended definition Source: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
To name or call someone by name, emphasizing public identification and formal designation rather than mere mention.
(ὄνομα), [in LXX for זָכַר, נָקַב, קָרָא ;]
1to name, mention, or address by name: Act.19:13; pass., Rom.15:20, Eph.1:21 5:3; of the use of the Divine name in praise and worship, 2Ti.2:19 (LXX, Num.16:26; cf. Isa.52:11, Amo.6:10).
2to name, call, give a name to: Mrk.3:14 (T, R, txt. om.), Luk.6:13-14; pass., 1Co.5:11; before ἐξ (cl.), Eph.3:15 (cf. ἐπ-ονομάζω).
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
10 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Luke 6:13 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ὠνόμασε, wnomasen
I give a name to, mention
Read verse Luke 6:14 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ὠνόμασε wnomasen
I give a name to, mention
Read verse Acts 19:13 Verb Present Active Infinitive
ὀνομάζειν onomazein
I give a name to, mention
Read verse Romans 15:20 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Passive Indicative
ὠνομάσθη wnomasqh
I give a name to, mention
Read verse 1 Corinthians 5:1 Verb Third Person Singular Present Passive Indicative
ὀνομάζεται, onomazetai
I give a name to, mention
Read verse 1 Corinthians 5:11 Verb Present Passive Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
ὀνομαζόμενος onomazomenov
I give a name to, mention
Read verse Ephesians 1:21 Verb Present Passive Participle Genitive Singular Neuter
ὀνομαζομένου onomazomenou
I give a name to, mention
Read verse Ephesians 3:15 Verb Third Person Singular Present Passive Indicative
ὀνομάζεται, onomazetai
I give a name to, mention
Read verse Ephesians 5:3 Verb Third Person Singular Present Passive Imperative
ὀνομαζέσθω onomazesqw
I give a name to, mention
Read verse 2 Timothy 2:19 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
ὀνομάζων onomazwn
I give a name to, mention
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 groups 4 Aligned forms 9 Tenses Aorist, Present Voices Active, Passive
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Indicative states a fact or reality 4×
Aorist Active Luke 6:13 · Luke 6:14 2×
Aorist Passive Rom 15:20 1×
Present Passive Eph 3:15 1×
Infinitive verbal noun — the action in abstract 1×
Present Active Acts 19:13 1×
Participle verbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality 3×
Present Passive 1 Cor 5:11 · Eph 1:21 2×
Present Active 2 Tim 2:19 1×
Imperative command or strong request 1×
Present Passive Eph 5:3 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 8 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
present 5 aorist 3
Voice
active 4 passive 4
Mood
indicative 4 participle 2 infinitive 1 imperative 1
NT Occurrences
Luke 6:13 ὠνόμασεν aorist active indicative completed Luke 6:14 ὠνόμασεν aorist active indicative completed Acts 19:13 ὀνομάζειν present active infinitive infinitive Romans 15:20 ὠνομάσθη aorist passive indicative completed Ephesians 1:21 ὀνομαζομένου present passive participle participle Ephesians 3:15 ὀνομάζεται present passive indicative ongoing Ephesians 5:3 ὀνομαζέσθω present passive imperative imperative 2 Timothy 2:19 ὀνομάζων present active participle participle
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 Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Biblical Witnesses
to name or mention a title or authority by name in exaltation
to name or designate a family or lineage from which names derive
to mention or name something by verbal reference or utterance
Showing 3 selected witnesses from 9 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
ὀνομάζω 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.
For the Preacher and Teacher
G3687 helps teachers show that naming has theological weight. Christ must be named where He is not known. God's people receive their identity from the Father rather than inventing themselves. Sin must not become the name by which the church is recognized. These uses are not identical, but they share a public dimension. Naming makes something known, identifies belonging, or signals what characterizes a people.
This matters in mission and holiness. The church should be eager for Christ to be named among the nations and careful that greed, impurity, and sexual immorality are not what name the saints. Naming can serve witness, identity, or warning.
Anchor passage
Eph.3.15
Doctrinal connections
- Rom.15.20 - Paul's ambition is to preach where Christ has not been named. The word marks public recognition of Christ in mission.
- Eph.3.15 - Every family in heaven and on earth is named from the Father. The word supports derived identity under God's fatherhood, not autonomous self-definition.
- Eph.5.3 - Paul says sexual immorality, impurity, and greed should not even be named among the saints. The word can mark what should not characterize the church's public identity.
To name, mention, or be named is the reviewed display gloss for G3687. In this Pauline-focused companion, local STEP TAGNT evidence shows about 7 Pauline use(s), with common forms including V-PPI-3S 2, V-API-3S 1, V-PAP-NSM 1, V-PPM-3S 1, V-PPP-GSN 1, V-PPP-NSM 1. Treat these form signals as support for reading the passage, not as a replacement for context.
From Old to New Testament
The Pauline trajectory moves from the public naming of Christ to the Father-derived naming of God's people and the refusal to let sin name the church.
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain