Word study
Publicly
6 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with “publicly”. English often uses one word where Hebrew or Greek has several, each with its own shade of meaning. Under each word are verses where it is translated this way; choose the word itself for its full study: every verse, how else it is translated, the forms it takes and what the dictionaries say.
At a glance
How often each original word is translated “publicly” or one of its forms.
Compare the Greek words side by side
Greek words (New Testament)
- παῤῥησία parrhēsíafreedom, confidencetranslated this way 4 times of its 30 uses · Strong’s G3954Noun · Translated: confidence 10, publicly 4, plainly 4, boldness 3Full study and all 30 verses →
John 7:4 For no one who wants to be known publicly acts in secret. Since You are doing these things, show Yourself to the world.”
John 7:13 Yet no one would speak publicly about Him for fear of the Jews.
- δημόσιος dēmósiospublic, publiclytranslated this way 2 times of its 4 uses · Strong’s G1219Adjective · Translated: public 2, publicly 2Full study and all 4 verses →
Acts 16:37 But Paul said to the officers, “They beat us publicly without a trial and threw us into prison, even though we are Roman citizens. And now do they want to send us away secretly? Absolutely not! Let them come themselves and escort us out!”
Acts 20:20 I did not shrink back from declaring anything that was helpful to you as I taught you publicly and from house to house,
- δειγματίζω deigmatízōI hold up as an exampletranslated this way 1 time of its 2 uses · Strong’s G1165Verb · Translated: disgrace her publicly 1, made a public spectacle 1Full study and all 2 verses →
Matthew 1:19 Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and was unwilling to disgrace her publicly, he resolved to divorce her quietly.
- φανερῶς phanerōsclearly, openlytranslated this way 1 time of its 2 uses · Strong’s G5320Adverb · Translated: plain view 1, publicly 1Full study and all 2 verses →
John 7:10 But after His brothers had gone up to the feast, He also went — not publicly, but in secret.
- πλῆθος plēthosa multitudetranslated this way 1 time of its 31 uses · Strong’s G4128Noun · Translated: number 5, crowd 4, multitude 4, congregation 2Full study and all 31 verses →
Acts 19:9 But when some of them stubbornly refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way, Paul took his disciples and left the synagogue to conduct daily discussions in the lecture hall of Tyrannus.
- θεατρίζω theatrízōI make a public show oftranslated this way 1 time of its 1 use · Strong’s G2301Verb · Translated: publicly exposed 1Full study and its 1 verse →
Hebrews 10:33 Sometimes you were publicly exposed to ridicule and persecution; at other times you were partners with those who were so treated.
How to study a word well
- Start from the verse, not the dictionary. Find which Hebrew or Greek word stands in the verse you are studying. One English word often translates several different original words.
- Read every place the word is used. A word means what its writers used it to mean. The list of verses and the count by book show its range, and who uses it most.
- Look at how it is translated. A word rendered five different ways has a wider meaning than any one English word can carry.
- Notice the form. A command is not a statement, and a passive verb is something done to the subject. The form in your verse is part of the meaning.
- See what it keeps company with. The words that appear beside it again and again show how the Bible itself connects ideas.
- Then read the dictionaries. They give the considered view of scholars, with their evidence.
- Come back to the verse. Context decides. A word does not carry every one of its meanings into every verse, and where a word came from does not settle what it means in a sentence written centuries later.
Scripture text and translation counts: Berean Standard Bible. Short definition: Dodson Greek Lexicon (2010, public domain). Full entry: G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922, public domain). Strong’s Greek Dictionary (1890) in the edition by Ulrik Sandborg-Petersen (CC0). These are historical reference works; an entry gives its authors’ view, and a word’s meaning in any verse depends on how it is used there.