What does πρωτεύω (prōteúō) mean in the Bible?
πρωτεύω (prōteúō) is a Greek word meaning "to be first (in rank or influence)".
Greek · G4409
πρωτεύω
To be first (in rank or influence)
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πρωτεύωG4409
Pronunciationprōteúō
What does πρωτεύω (prōteúō) mean in the Bible?
πρωτεύω (prōteúō) is a Greek word meaning "to be first (in rank or influence)".
Full entry for πρωτεύω (G4409) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G4409?
The BSB source-word alignment has 1 aligned row for this entry. Common renderings include have preeminence (1).
Where does πρωτεύω (prōteúō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Colossians 1:18. Its strongest book concentrations include Colossians (1).
Are there verse guides for πρωτεύω (prōteúō)?
This entry includes 1 verse guide that explain exact original-language forms in 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 Ithave preeminence1×Colossians 1:18
Show sample aligned rows
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowColossians 1:18
Aligned rows1
Books represented1
Colossians1
Source forms
πρωτεύων1xprōteuōnColossians 1:18
Parsing patterns
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular1xColossians 1:18
Key Verse and Form Guides
Verse-level guides showing how this original-language form works in its specific context, including grammar, verse function, and guarded interpretation.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. to be first (in rank or influence)
Source Gloss
to be first (in rank or influence)
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
1 Greek text appearance shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
prwteuwn
I have preeminence, am chief
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 forms1TensesPresentVoicesActive
Tenses
Voices
Participleverbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 1 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
present1
Voice
active1
Mood
participle1
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
πρωτεύω is built from this root: