verb
antilegamō
Strong’sG483
I speak or say in opposition, contradict
stem antileg-11 times in the New Testamentin 5 of 27 books9 forms occur
What it means
A plain-English reading of the word, with the lexicons it draws on — Abbott-Smith, Strong's, and Liddell-Scott-Jones — right below it, in full.
AI Summary
ἀντιλέγω means to speak against, contradict, or oppose someone or something, whether in speech, in argument, or by resisting a claim or a summons 1234. It can be used on its own, with the person opposed named in the dative case, or with an object clause stating what is being contradicted 1. In the passive it describes something or someone that is spoken against or disputed 13. Strong's also brings out the related senses of refusing or denying something, and of being a gainsayer, one who speaks in opposition 2.
Sources: 1 Abbott-Smith 2 Strong's 3 LSJ 4 Dodson. Condensed by anthropic/claude-sonnet-5 on 2026-09-23 — it may still misstate what these say; check them yourself if it matters to you.
The lexicons it was drawn from, in full:
Abbott-Smith — the 1922 lexicon entry, in full
ἀντι-λέγω,
[in LXX: Ho 4:4 (רִיב hi.), Is 50:5 (סוּג ni.) Is 22:22 65:2, Si 4:25, III Mac 2:28, IV Mac 4:7 8:2*;]
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G483 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Liddell-Scott-Jones — the classical dictionary this word appears in
Refs 5th c.BC+: future ἀντιλέξωRefs 5th c.BC+: aorist ἀντέλεξαRefs 5th c.BC+perfect ἀντείρηκα: future passive ἀντειρήσομαι:—speak against, gainsay, contradict, τινίRefs 5th c.BC+; ὑπὲρ τῶν δικαίωνRefs 5th c.BC+ —often followed by a dependent clause, ἀ. ὡς.. declare in opposition or answer that.., χρησμοῖσι οὐκ ἔχω ἀντιλέγειν ὡς οὐκ εἰσὶ ἀληθέεςRefs 5th c.BC+infinitive, ἀ. ποιήσειν ταῦτα, ἤν.. to reply that they will.., if.., Refs 5th c.BC+
2 with accusative of things, ἴσ᾽ ἀντιλέξαιRefs 5th c.BC+; μῦθον ἀ. τινί tell one tale in reply to another, Refs 5th c.BC+:—passive, to be disputed, questioned, Refs 5th c.BC+; of a place, ὑπό τινος ἀντιλεγόμενον counter-claimed,Refs 4th c.BC+points in dispute, Refs 4th c.BC+; πρὸς τὰ ἀντειρημένα κτλ., title of work by Chrysippus, Refs; τόπος ἀντιλλεγόμενος (sic) Refs 2nd c.BC+; of the genuineness of literary works, to be disputed, Refs 1st c.AD+
3 absolutely, speak in opposition, Refs 5th c.BC+the opponent, LXX+5th c.BC+
H. G. Liddell, R. Scott, H. S. Jones, A Greek-English Lexicon (9th ed., 1925–1940) — digitised by the Perseus Digital Library and corrected and expanded by Tyndale House, Cambridge, via STEPBible-Data's TFLSJ table, CC BY 4.0. Covers all of Greek literature, not just the Bible.
Translated as
Every occurrence, sorted by the English it was actually given — the evidence for what the word means, not a gloss of it.
Berean Standard Bible (BSB), dedicated to the public domain — berean.bible.
Biblang forms
What the New Testament actually uses, first — the whole system this verb is built from is one click further down.
| Form and the Greek behind it | What it is | Usually | Times |
|---|---|---|---|
| antilegatōἀντιλέγει | happening now · he/she/itpresent active indicative 3rd person singular | opposes | 1× |
| antilegotōἀντιλέγεται | happening now · he/she/itpresent middle or passive indicative 3rd person singular | spoken against | 1× |
| antilegaleἀντέλεγον | was happening · theyimperfect active indicative 3rd person plural | contradicting | 1× |
| antilegaraἀντειπεῖν | happened · the “to …” formaorist active infinitive | contradict | 2× |
| antilegarōntonἀντιλέγοντα | happening now · objectpresent active participle accusative singular masculine | contrary | 1× |
| antilegarōntoisἀντιλέγοντες | happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative plural masculine | say | 1× |
| antilegarōntoinἀντιλέγοντας | happening now · objectpresent active participle accusative plural masculine | talk back | 2× |
| antilegarōntoiuἀντιλεγόντων | happening now · of, belonging topresent active participle genitive plural masculine | objected | 1× |
| antilegorōntemἀντιλεγόμενον | happening now · objectpresent middle or passive participle direct singular neuter | opposed | 1× |
Every form the New Testament uses, in paradigm order. What the system can build beyond them — the whole of this verb, whether the text happens to use it or not — is in the tables below.
Every form the system can build — all 140, by mood, including the ones the New Testament never uses
Statements — indicative mood, 3 occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | was happening imperfect | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect | had happened pluperfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | antilegamō | antilegame | antilegami | antilegama | antilegamē | antilegamelē |
| you 2nd person singular | antilegasō | antilegase | antilegasi | antilegasa | antilegasē | antilegaselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | antilegatō1×ἀντιλέγει | antilegate | antilegati | antilegata | antilegatē | antilegatelē |
| we 1st person plural | antileganō | antilegane | antilegani | antilegana | antileganē | antileganelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | antilegavō | antilegave | antilegavi | antilegava | antilegavē | antilegavelē |
| they 3rd person plural | antilegalō | antilegale1×ἀντέλεγον | antilegali | antilegala | antilegalē | antilegalelē |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | was happening imperfect | has happened perfect | had happened pluperfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | antilegomō | antilegome | antilegomē | antilegomelē |
| you 2nd person singular | antilegosō | antilegose | antilegosē | antilegoselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | antilegotō1×ἀντιλέγεται | antilegote | antilegotē | antilegotelē |
| we 1st person plural | antilegonō | antilegone | antilegonē | antilegonelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | antilegovō | antilegove | antilegovē | antilegovelē |
| they 3rd person plural | antilegolō | antilegole | antilegolē | antilegolelē |
May, might — subjunctive mood, no occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | antilegameiō | antilegameia | antilegameiē |
| you 2nd person singular | antilegaseiō | antilegaseia | antilegaseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | antilegateiō | antilegateia | antilegateiē |
| we 1st person plural | antileganeiō | antileganeia | antileganeiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | antilegaveiō | antilegaveia | antilegaveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | antilegaleiō | antilegaleia | antilegaleiē |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | antilegomeiō | antilegomeiē |
| you 2nd person singular | antilegoseiō | antilegoseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | antilegoteiō | antilegoteiē |
| we 1st person plural | antilegoneiō | antilegoneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | antilegoveiō | antilegoveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | antilegoleiō | antilegoleiē |
Commands — imperative mood, no occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | antilegasōr | antilegasar | antilegasēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | antilegatōr | antilegatar | antilegatēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | antilegavōr | antilegavar | antilegavēr |
| they 3rd person plural | antilegalōr | antilegalar | antilegalēr |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | antilegosōr | antilegosēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | antilegotōr | antilegotēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | antilegovōr | antilegovēr |
| they 3rd person plural | antilegolōr | antilegolēr |
Wishes — optative mood, no occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | antilegamoiō | antilegamoia |
| you 2nd person singular | antilegasoiō | antilegasoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | antilegatoiō | antilegatoia |
| we 1st person plural | antileganoiō | antileganoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | antilegavoiō | antilegavoia |
| they 3rd person plural | antilegaloiō | antilegaloia |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | antilegomoiō |
| you 2nd person singular | antilegosoiō |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | antilegotoiō |
| we 1st person plural | antilegonoiō |
| ye 2nd person plural | antilegovoiō |
| they 3rd person plural | antilegoloiō |
The “to …” form — infinitive, 2 occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | antilegarō | antilegari | antilegara2×ἀντειπεῖν | antilegarē |
| acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice | antilegorō | antilegorē |
Used as an adjective — participle, 6 occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | antilegarōntos5× | antilegarintos | antilegarantos | antilegarēntos |
| acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice | antilegorōntos1× | antilegorēntos |
Each is given in the form it takes as a subject. From there a participle carries the ordinary noun endings, in every case, number and gender — so these four columns are the whole of what the verb contributes.
How every form is built — the slots that make them
antileg is this word in every one of its forms. The slots after it make all the rest.
same in every form varies — every value shown
Where it appears
Every verse the word appears in, filed under the form it takes there.
11 occurrences, every one of them listed
antilegatō“opposes”happening now · he/she/itpresent active indicative 3rd person singular1×
John 19:12“opposes”… Kaisarou; pantos tos basilevon heauton poiarōntos antilegatō to Kaisaro.… Caesar. Anyone who declares himself a king is defying Caesar.”
antilegotō“spoken against”happening now · he/she/itpresent middle or passive indicative 3rd person singular1×
Acts 28:22“spoken against”… houtau gnōstem ni atō hoti pantachou antilegotō.… hearing, because we know that people everywhere are speaking against this sect.”
antilegale“contradicting”was happening · theyimperfect active indicative 3rd person plural1×
Acts 13:45“contradicting”… Ioudaiois toin ochloin pimplēila zēlou kai antilegale tei hupo Paulou lalorōntei blasfēmarōntois.… when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and they blasphemously contradicted what Paul was saying.
antilegara“contradict”happened · the “to …” formaorist active infinitive2×
Luke 21:15… sofian ha ouk duneli antistēara ē antilegara hapantois tois antikeiorōntois vi.… will be able to resist or contradict.
Acts 4:14“say in opposition”… autoi stēarēnton ton therapeuorēnton oudenem echale antilegara.… had been healed standing there with them, they had nothing to say …
antilegarōnton“contrary”happening now · objectpresent active participle accusative singular masculine1×
Romans 10:21“contrary”… cheirain mu pros laon apeitharōnton kai antilegarōnton.… held out My hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.”
antilegarōntois“say”happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative plural masculine1×
Luke 20:27Prosercharantois de tinois toiu Saddoukaioiu, tois antilegarōntois anastasian mē arō, eperōtala autonThen some of the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to …
antilegarōntoin“talk back”happening now · objectpresent active participle accusative plural masculine2×
Titus 1:9… ta didaskalia ta hugiainarōnta kai toin antilegarōntoin elencharō.… sound teaching and refute those who contradict it.
Titus 2:9“talk back”… hupotassorō en pantei, euarestoin arō, mē antilegarōntoin,… own masters in everything, to be well-pleasing, not argumentative,
antilegarōntoiu“objected”happening now · of, belonging topresent active participle genitive plural masculine1×
Acts 28:19antilegarōntoiu de toiu Ioudaioiu anankazima epikalera Kaisaron, …But when the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to …
antilegorōntem“opposed”happening now · objectpresent middle or passive participle direct singular neuter1×
Luke 2:34“opposed”… en to Israēl kai eis sēmem antilegorōntem,… of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will …