verb
auxanamō
Strong’sG837
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
stem auxan-21 times in the New Testamentin 11 of 27 books15 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
Increase, grow, become greater — either of something becoming larger or more numerous itself, or of causing something else to grow. 1234
Used with an object, the word means to make something grow or increase, as of a person causing plants or spiritual life to increase. 1 Used without an object, or in the passive, it means to grow or become greater, said of plants, of infants growing up, of a crowd increasing in number, of the spread of the Christian message, and of growth in grace, knowledge, or Christian character. 1 Classical Greek also used it to mean increasing someone's power, glorifying or extolling a person or place, or amplifying a statement in speech, but none of these uses occur in the biblical text. 3
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
αὐξάνω
(and the earlier form αὔξω, Eph 2:21, Col 2:19; MM, s.v.), [in LXX chiefly for פּרה;]
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G837 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Saidowx-an'-o
to grow ("wax"), i.e. enlarge (literal or figurative, active or passive)
Froma prolonged form of a primary verb;
King Jamesgrow (up), (give the) increase.
James Strong, Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, 1890 — public domain. The numbers in it link to the entries here.
Liddell-Scott-Jones — the classical dictionary this word appears in
Refs 5th c.BC+:—also αὔξω (poetry ἀέξω, which see) Refs 6th c.BC+ (so Attic dialect Inscrr. and Ptolemaic Papyrus; both forms in NT) imperfect ηὔξανον only Ps.-Refs 5th c.BC+; ηὖξονRefs 5th c.BC+: future αὐξήσωLXX+5th c.BC+: aorist I ηὔξησαRefs 6th c.BC+: perfect ηὔξηκαRefs 5th c.BC+:—passive, αὐξάνομαιRefs 5th c.BC+, imperfect ηὔξετοRefs 8th c.BC+: perfect ηὔξημαιRefs 5th c.BC+, Ionic dialect αὔξ-Refs 5th c.BC+: pluperfect ηὔξητοRefs: aorist ηὐξήθηνRefs 5th c.BC+: future αὐξηθήσομαιRefs 5th c.BC+:—increase, not in Refs 8th c.BC+; opposed to ἰσχναίνειν, Refs 5th c.BC+
2 increase in power, strengthen, αὐ. τὰ Ἑλλήνων increase their power, Refs 5th c.BC+; exalt by one's deeds, glorify, πόλιν, πάτραν, Refs 5th c.BC+; exalt by praise, extol, ἐπαινεῖν καὶ αὔξειν τινάRefs 5th c.BC+; σέ γε.. καὶ τροφὸν καὶ ματέρ᾽ αὔξειν honour thee as.., Refs 5th c.BC+; of an orator, amplify, exaggerate, αὔξειν καὶ μειοῦνRefs 4th c.BC+
3 with an adjective, τρέφειν καὶ αὐ. τινὰ μέγαν bring up to manhood, Refs 5th c.BC+
4 αὔξειν ἔμπυρα to sacrifice, Refs 5th c.BC+; compare ἀέξω.
5 in Logic, ={καταπυκνόω} (which see), Refs 4th c.BC+; but ὁ αὐξόμενος λόγος, name of a fallacy, Refs 1st c.AD+
II passive, grow, increase, in size, number, strength, power, etc., Refs 8th c.BC+; αὐ. ἐς πλῆθος, ἐς ὕψος, Refs 5th c.BC+; of a child, grow up, Refs.; ἐν γὰρ τοῖς πόνοισιν αὔξεται, of Theseus, Refs 5th c.BC+; ηὐξανόμην ἀκούων I grew taller as I heard, Refs 5th c.BC+; of the wind, rise, Refs 5th c.BC+
II.2 with an adjective, αὔξεσθαι μέγας wax great, grow up, Refs 5th c.BC+
III later, active intransitive, like passive, ἡ σελήνη αὐξάνειNT+4th c.BC+
IV of Verbs, take the augment, both active and passive, Refs 2nd c.AD+; αὔξουσα (i.e. συλλαβή), ἡ, augment, Refs
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.
1 rarer rendering are not shown; every occurrence below carries the English it was given there.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| auxanatōαὐξάνει | happening now · he/she/itpresent active indicative 3rd person singular | grow | 1× |
| auxanalōαὐξάνουσιν | happening now · theypresent active indicative 3rd person plural | grow | 1× |
| auxanateηὔξανεν | was happening · he/she/itimperfect active indicative 3rd person singular | grew | 6× |
| auxanatiαὐξήσει | will happen · he/she/itfuture active indicative 3rd person singular | increase | 1× |
| auxanataηὔξησεν | happened · he/she/itaorist active indicative 3rd person singular | grew | 2× |
| auxananeiaαὐξήσωμεν | happened · weaorist active subjunctive 1st person plural | grow up | 1× |
| auxaniteiaαὐξηθῇ | happened · he/she/itaorist passive subjunctive 3rd person singular | grown | 1× |
| auxaniveiaαὐξηθῆτε | happened · yeaorist passive subjunctive 2nd person plural | grow up | 1× |
| auxanavōrαὐξάνετε | happening now · yepresent active imperative 2nd person plural | grow | 1× |
| auxanarōαὐξάνειν | happening now · the “to …” formpresent active infinitive | increase | 1× |
| auxanarōntosαὐξάνων | happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative singular masculine | gives the growth | 1× |
| auxanorōntemαὐξανόμενον | happening now · subjectpresent middle or passive participle direct singular neuter | growing | 1× |
| auxanorōntauαὐξανομένης | happening now · of, belonging topresent middle or passive participle genitive singular feminine | increases | 1× |
| auxanorōntoisαὐξανόμενοι | happening now · subjectpresent middle or passive participle nominative plural masculine | increasing | 1× |
| auxanorōnteimαὐξανόμενα | happening now · subjectpresent middle or passive participle direct plural neuter | increasing | 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 172, by mood, including the ones the New Testament never uses
Statements — indicative mood, 11 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 | auxanamō | auxaname | auxanami | auxanama | auxanamē | auxanamelē |
| you 2nd person singular | auxanasō | auxanase | auxanasi | auxanasa | auxanasē | auxanaselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxanatō1×αὐξάνει | auxanate6×ηὔξανεν | auxanati1×αὐξήσει | auxanata2×ηὔξησεν | auxanatē | auxanatelē |
| we 1st person plural | auxananō | auxanane | auxanani | auxanana | auxananē | auxananelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanavō | auxanave | auxanavi | auxanava | auxanavē | auxanavelē |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanalō1×αὐξάνουσιν | auxanale | auxanali | auxanala | auxanalē | auxanalelē |
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 | auxanomō | auxanome | auxanomē | auxanomelē |
| you 2nd person singular | auxanosō | auxanose | auxanosē | auxanoselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxanotō | auxanote | auxanotē | auxanotelē |
| we 1st person plural | auxanonō | auxanone | auxanonē | auxanonelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanovō | auxanove | auxanovē | auxanovelē |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanolō | auxanole | auxanolē | auxanolelē |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | will happen future | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | auxanimi | auxanima |
| you 2nd person singular | auxanisi | auxanisa |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxaniti | auxanita |
| we 1st person plural | auxanini | auxanina |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanivi | auxaniva |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanili | auxanila |
May, might — subjunctive mood, 3 occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | auxanameiō | auxanameia | auxanameiē |
| you 2nd person singular | auxanaseiō | auxanaseia | auxanaseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxanateiō | auxanateia | auxanateiē |
| we 1st person plural | auxananeiō | auxananeia1×αὐξήσωμεν | auxananeiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanaveiō | auxanaveia | auxanaveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanaleiō | auxanaleia | auxanaleiē |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | auxanomeiō | auxanomeiē |
| you 2nd person singular | auxanoseiō | auxanoseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxanoteiō | auxanoteiē |
| we 1st person plural | auxanoneiō | auxanoneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanoveiō | auxanoveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanoleiō | auxanoleiē |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | auxanimeia |
| you 2nd person singular | auxaniseia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxaniteia1×αὐξηθῇ |
| we 1st person plural | auxanineia |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxaniveia1×αὐξηθῆτε |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanileia |
Commands — imperative mood, 1 occurrence
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | auxanasōr | auxanasar | auxanasēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxanatōr | auxanatar | auxanatēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanavōr1×αὐξάνετε | auxanavar | auxanavēr |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanalōr | auxanalar | auxanalēr |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | auxanosōr | auxanosēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxanotōr | auxanotēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanovōr | auxanovēr |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanolōr | auxanolēr |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | auxanisar |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxanitar |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanivar |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanilar |
Wishes — optative mood, no occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | auxanamoiō | auxanamoia |
| you 2nd person singular | auxanasoiō | auxanasoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxanatoiō | auxanatoia |
| we 1st person plural | auxananoiō | auxananoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanavoiō | auxanavoia |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanaloiō | auxanaloia |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | auxanomoiō |
| you 2nd person singular | auxanosoiō |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxanotoiō |
| we 1st person plural | auxanonoiō |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanovoiō |
| they 3rd person plural | auxanoloiō |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | auxanimoia |
| you 2nd person singular | auxanisoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | auxanitoia |
| we 1st person plural | auxaninoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | auxanivoia |
| they 3rd person plural | auxaniloia |
The “to …” form — infinitive, 1 occurrence
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | auxanarō1×αὐξάνειν | auxanari | auxanara | auxanarē |
| acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice | auxanorō | auxanorē | ||
| acted on passive voice | auxaniri | auxanira |
Used as an adjective — participle, 5 occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | auxanarōntos1×αὐξάνων | auxanarintos | auxanarantos | auxanarēntos |
| acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice | auxanorōntos4× | auxanorēntos | ||
| acted on passive voice | auxanirintos | auxanirantos |
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
auxan 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.
21 occurrences, every one of them listed
auxanatō“grow”happening now · he/she/itpresent active indicative 3rd person singular1×
Luke 12:27katanoavar teim krineim pōs auxanatō; ouk kopiatō oude nēthatō; legamō de …Consider how the lilies grow: They do not labor or spin …
auxanalō“grow”happening now · theypresent active indicative 3rd person plural1×
Matthew 6:28… katamathavar teim krineim tou agrou pōs auxanalō; ouk kopialō oude nēthalō;… how the lilies of the field grow: They do not labor or spin.
auxanate“grew”was happening · he/she/itimperfect active indicative 3rd person singular6×
Luke 1:80Tem de paidiem auxanate kai krataiote pneume, kai ate en …And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and …
Luke 2:40Tem de paidiem auxanate kai krataiote plērorōntem sofia, kai charitas …And the Child grew and became strong. He was filled …
Acts 6:7Kai tos logos tou theou auxanate, kai plēthunote tos arithmos toiu mathētoiu …… the word of God continued to spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem …
Acts 12:24“advance”Tos de logos tou theou auxanate kai plēthunote.But the word of God continued to spread and multiply.
Acts 19:20“grew”… kata kratem tou kuriou tos logos auxanate kai ischuate.So the word of the Lord powerfully continued to spread and prevail.
1 Corinthians 3:6“gave the growth”… futeuama, Apollos potizata, alla tos theos auxanate;I planted the seed and Apollos watered it, but God made it …
auxanati“increase”will happen · he/she/itfuture active indicative 3rd person singular1×
2 Corinthians 9:10… kai plēthunati ton sporon vu kai auxanati teim genēmeim tau dikaiosunau vu;… your store of seed and will increase the harvest of your righteousness.
auxanata“grew”happened · he/she/itaorist active indicative 3rd person singular2×
Luke 13:19… anthrōpos balata eis kēpon heautou, kai auxanata kai geneta eis dendrem, kai teim …… man tossed into his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the …
Acts 7:17… hau homologata tos theos to Abraam, auxanata tos laos kai plēthunita en Aigupta,… to Abraham, our people in Egypt increased greatly in number.
auxananeia“grow up”happened · weaorist active subjunctive 1st person plural1×
Ephesians 4:15alētheuarōntois de en agapa auxananeia eis auton teim panteim, hos atō …… love, we will in all things grow up into Christ Himself, who is the …
auxaniteia“grown”happened · he/she/itaorist passive subjunctive 3rd person singular1×
Matthew 13:32“grown”… atō panteiu teiu spermeiu, hotan de auxaniteia megoterem teiu lachaneiu atō kai genotō …Although it is the smallest of all seeds, yet it grows into the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree …
auxaniveia“grow up”happened · yeaorist passive subjunctive 2nd person plural1×
1 Peter 2:2… adolem galaktem epipothavar, hina en aute auxaniveia eis sōtērēan,… so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,
auxanavōr“grow”happening now · yepresent active imperative 2nd person plural1×
2 Peter 3:18auxanavōr de en charita kai gnōsia tou …But grow in the grace and knowledge of …
auxanarō“increase”happening now · the “to …” formpresent active infinitive1×
John 3:30ekeinon datō auxanarō, min de elattorō.He must increase; I must decrease.
auxanarōntos“gives the growth”happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative singular masculine1×
1 Corinthians 3:7“gives the growth”… tinem oute tos potizarōntos, alla tos auxanarōntos theos.… who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes …
auxanorōntem“growing”happening now · subjectpresent middle or passive participle direct singular neuter1×
Colossians 1:6… panto to kosmo atō karpofororōntem kai auxanorōntem kathōs kai en vi, apo hau …… this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing …
auxanorōntau“increases”happening now · of, belonging topresent middle or passive participle genitive singular feminine1×
2 Corinthians 10:15… en allotrioi kopoi, elpidan de echarōntois auxanorōntau tau pistiau vu en vi megalunira …… we hope that as your faith increases, our area of influence among you …
auxanorōntois“increasing”happening now · subjectpresent middle or passive participle nominative plural masculine1×
Colossians 1:10“increasing”… en pante erge agathe karpoforarōntois kai auxanorōntois ta epignōsia tou theou,… the Lord and may please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,
auxanorōnteim“increasing”happening now · subjectpresent middle or passive participle direct plural neuter1×
Mark 4:8“increasing”… kalan, kai dōate karpon anabainarōnteim kai auxanorōnteim, kai ferate henem triakonta kai henem …… fell on good soil, where it sprouted, grew up, and produced a crop — one bearing thirtyfold, another sixtyfold, and another a …