What does ὠδίνω (ōdínō) mean in the Bible?
ὠδίνω (ōdínō) is a Greek word meaning "to experience the pains of parturition (literally or figuratively)".
Greek · G5605
ὠδίνω
To experience the pains of parturition (literally or figuratively)
Reading a lexicon entry
What this page is: Each lexicon entry shows the original Hebrew or Greek word behind the English translation: its meaning, its range of use, and where it appears in Scripture.
Strong's number: The Strong's code (H- or G-) is the standard reference number for this word. It connects this entry to chapter and passage language tabs.
Where it appears: The witness passages show where this word is used in context. Click any to open the study page for that passage.
This lexicon entry is part of our ongoing editorial review. If you notice missing content, unclear wording, or a possible correction, please send us a note through the Connect page. Screenshots are helpful.
ὠδίνω G5605
Pronunciation ōdínō
What does ὠδίνω (ōdínō) mean in the Bible?
ὠδίνω (ōdínō) is a Greek word meaning "to experience the pains of parturition (literally or figuratively)".
Full entry for ὠδίνω (G5605) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G5605?
The BSB source-word alignment has 3 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include in the pain (1), in the pains of childbirth (1), travailed (1).
Where does ὠδίνω (ōdínō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Galatians 4:19. Its strongest book concentrations include Galatians (2), Revelation (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 in the pain 1× Revelation 12:2
in the pains of childbirth 1× Galatians 4:19
travailed 1× Galatians 4:27
Show sample aligned rows
Galatians 4:19 ὠδίνω to in the pains of childbirth Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular Galatians 4:27 ὠδίνουσα to travailed Verb - Present Participle Active - Vocative Feminine Singular Revelation 12:2 ὠδίνουσα to in the pain Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Feminine Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Galatians 4:19
Aligned rows 3
Books represented 2
Galatians 2 Revelation 1
Source forms
ὠδίνουσα 2x ōdinousa Galatians 4:27, Revelation 12:2
ὠδίνω 1x ōdinō Galatians 4:19
Parsing patterns
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular 1x Galatians 4:19
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Feminine Singular 1x Revelation 12:2
Verb - Present Participle Active - Vocative Feminine Singular 1x Galatians 4:27
Evidence Summary
Greek word. to experience the pains of parturition (literally or figuratively)
Strong's G5605
Lexical occurrences 3 verses Greek text appearances 3 times Word forms 2 forms 3 references Verse guides 0 guides
Source Gloss
to experience the pains of parturition (literally or figuratively)
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
3 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Galatians 4:19 Verb First Person Singular Present Active Indicative
ὠδίνω, wdinw
I am in travail, suffer birth-pangs
Read verse Galatians 4:27 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Feminine
ὠδίνουσα· wdinousa
I am in travail, suffer birth-pangs
Read verse Revelation 12:2 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Feminine
ὠδίνουσα, wdinousa
I am in travail, suffer birth-pangs
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 2 Aligned forms 3 Tenses Present Voices Active
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Participle verbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality 2×
Present Active Gal 4:27 · Rev 12:2 2×
Indicative states a fact or reality 1×
Present Active Gal 4:19 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 3 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
present 3
Voice
active 3
Mood
participle 2 indicative 1
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)
Word Origins
ὠδίνω 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.
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