noun · feminine
fōnas
Strong’sG5456
a sound, noise, voice
stem fōn-139 times in the New Testamentin 11 of 27 books8 of 10 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
φωνή most often means a voice — the sound produced by a person's (or animal's) voice, whether ordinary speech, a cry, or a loud call 1234. It is used of people raising their voice or speaking loudly, of a voice heard out of heaven, and of hearing someone's voice 1. By extension it can stand for the speaker himself, as when "the voice" is something one sees rather than hears 1.
φωνή can also mean speech or language — an utterance made for some purpose, a saying, or the particular language a person speaks 23; one source gives an example of "voice" used in the sense of a foreign tongue or language 1.
The word is likewise used of sound made by something other than a living voice, such as the sound of wind, of a trumpet, or of thunder 13.
In addition, it can carry the sense of a report or rumor, a use found in the Greek Old Testament 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
φωνή, -ῆς, ἡ,
[in LXX chiefly and very freq. for קוֺל;]
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G5456 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Saidfo-nay'
a tone (articulate, bestial or artificial); by implication, an address (for any purpose), saying or language
Fromprobably akin to G5316 through the idea of disclosure;
King Jamesnoise, sound, voice.
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
sound, tone, properly, the sound of the voice, whether of men or animals with lungs and throat (ἡ φωνὴ ψόφος τίς ἐστιν ἐμψύχου Refs 4th c.BC+; opposed to φθόγγος (see. φθόγγος Refs
I mostly of human beings, speech, voice, utterance, φ. ἄρρηκτος Refs 8th c.BC+; φ. δέ οἱ αἰθέρ᾽ ἵκανεν, of Ajax' battle-cry, Refs; of the battle-cry of an army, Τρώων καὶ Ἀχαιῶν.. φ. δεινὸν ἀϋσάντων Refs: plural, of the cries of market-people, Refs 5th c.BC+; ὀξεῖα, βαρυτέρα, λεία, τραχεῖα φ., Refs 5th c.BC+; μιαρά, ἀναιδής, Refs 5th c.BC+with his voice, aloud, Refs 8th c.BC+; μιᾷ φ. with one voice, Refs 2nd c.AD+; ἀπὸ φωνῆς, with genitive, dictated by.., Refs 4th c.AD+ in Euc.Dat.p.234 M., Refs 4th c.BC+ the notes of the voice, Refs 5th c.BC+; πᾶσαν, τὸ λεγόμενον, φ. ἱέντα, i.e. using every effort, Refs 5th c.BC+
I.2 the cry of animals, as of swine, dogs, oxen, Refs 8th c.BC+; of asses, Refs 5th c.BC+; of the nightingale, song, Refs 8th c.BC+
I.3 any articulate sound, opposed to inarticulate noise (ψόφος), φ. κωκυμάτων Refs 5th c.BC+; also especially of vowelsound, opposed to to that of consonants, Refs 5th c.BC+; in literary criticism, of sound, opposed to meaning, Refs 1st c.BC+
I.4 of sounds made by inanimate objects, mostly poetical, κερκίδος φ. Refs 5th c.BC+; rare in early Prose, ὀργάνων φωναί LXX+5th c.BC+; φ. βροντῆςLXX+NT
I.5 generally, sound, defined as ἀὴρ πεπληγμένος, πληγὴ ἀέρος, Refs 4th c.BC+
II faculty of speech, discourse, εἰ φωνὴν λάβοι Refs 5th c.BC+
II.2 language, hdt.Refs 5th c.BC+
III phrase, saying, τὴν Σιμωνίδου φ. Refs 1st c.AD+; of formulae, στοιχειώματα καὶ φ. Refs 4th c.BC+
IV report, rumour, LXX
IV.b message, Refs 3rd c.AD+
V loud talk, bragging, Refs 4th 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
Every form this word takes in Biblang, with the Greek it corresponds to and how often the New Testament uses it.
| Job in the sentence case | one singular | more than one plural |
|---|---|---|
| subject nominative | fōnas32×φωνὴ | fōnais6×φωναὶ |
| object accusative | fōnan40×φωνὴν | fōnain2×φωνὰς |
| direct address vocative | fōnar | fōnair |
| of, belonging to genitive | fōnau23×φωνῆς | fōnaiu2×φωνῶν |
| to, for dative | fōna33×φωνῇ | fōnai1×φωναῖς |
Tinted cells are forms the New Testament never uses, so there is no Greek to show against them — but they are still correct Biblang, built from the slots below like any other.
Why these forms, and no others — the slots that make them
fōna 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
Words built on the same stem
Other words sharing the exact same stem — not merely related in meaning.
Where it appears
Every verse the word appears in, filed under the form it takes there.
139 occurrences, 100 of them printed here — the rest are in the reader
fōnas“voice”subjectnominative singular32×, 22 shown
Matthew 2:18Fōnas en Rama akouita, klauthmos kai odurmos …“A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and …
Matthew 3:3… legirantos dia Ēsaiou tou profētou legarōntou; Fōnas boarōntou en ta erēma; Hetoimazavar tan …… of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness …
Matthew 3:17kai idou fōnas ek toiu ouranoiu legarōntas; Houtos atō …And a voice from heaven said, “This is My …
Matthew 17:5… nefelas fōteinas episkiazata autoin, kai idou fōnas ek tau nefelau legarōntas; Houtos atō …… bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is …
Mark 1:3fōnas boarōntou en ta erēma; Hetoimazavar tan …“A voice of one calling in the wilderness …
Mark 1:11kai fōnas geneta ek toiu ouranoiu; Sis asō …And a voice came from heaven: “You are My …
Mark 9:7… geneta nefelas episkiazarōntas autoi, kai geneta fōnas ek tau nefelau; Houtos atō tos …… appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is …
Luke 1:44idou gar hōs geneta tas fōnas tou aspasmou su eis teim oueim …For as soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears …
Luke 3:4… en bibla logoiu Ēsaiou tou profētou; Fōnas boarōntou en ta erēma; Hetoimazavar tan …… words of Isaiah the prophet: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness …
Luke 9:35kai fōnas geneta ek tau nefelau legarōntas; Houtos …And a voice came from the cloud, saying, “This …
John 1:23fēate; Mis fōnas boarōntou en ta erēma; Euthunavar tan …… Isaiah the prophet: “I am a voice of one calling in the wilderness …
John 12:28… doxazasar su tem onomem. erchata oun fōnas ek tou ouranou; Kai doxazama kai …Father, glorify Your name!” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified …
John 12:30… kai legata; Ouk dia min tas fōnas houtas genatē alla dia vin.In response, Jesus said, “This voice was not for My benefit, but …
Acts 7:31… horamem. proserchorōntou de autou katanoara geneta fōnas kuriou;… approached to look more closely, the voice of the Lord came to him:
Acts 10:13kai geneta fōnas pros auton; Anastēarantos, Petror, thuasar kai …Then a voice said to him: “Get up, Peter …
Acts 10:15kai fōnas palin ek deutereu pros auton; Heim …The voice spoke to him a second time …
Acts 11:9apokrinita de fōnas ek deutereu ek tou ouranou; Heim …But the voice spoke from heaven a second time …
Acts 12:22tos de dēmos epifōnate; Theou fōnas kai ouk anthrōpou.… began to shout, “This is the voice of a god, not a man!”
Acts 19:34“voice”epignōskarantois de hoti Ioudaios atō fōnas geneta henas ek pantoiu hōs epi …But when they realized that he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours …
Hebrews 12:26hou tas fōnas tan gēan saleuata tote, nun de …At that time His voice shook the earth, but now He …
Revelation 1:15… hōs en kaminosa purorēntau, kai tas fōnas autou hōs fōnas hudeiu polleiu,… refined in a furnace, and His voice was like the roar of many …
Revelation 1:15“sound”… purorēntau, kai tas fōnas autou hōs fōnas hudeiu polleiu,… polished bronze refined in a furnace, and His voice was like the roar of many waters.
fōnan“voice”objectaccusative singular40×, 23 shown
Matthew 12:19… akouati tinos en tai platuai tan fōnan autou.… out; no one will hear His voice in the streets.
Mark 15:37tos de Iēsus afiēkarantos fōnan megan ekpnata.But Jesus let out a loud cry and breathed His last.
Luke 3:22… eide hōs peristeran epi auton, kai fōnan ek ouranou genera; Sis asō tos …… form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are My …
Luke 9:36kai en te genera tan fōnan heuriskita Iēsus monos. kai autois sigala …After the voice had spoken, only Jesus was present …
Luke 11:27… te legarō auton houteim epararantas tinas fōnan gunaikas ek tou ochlou legata auto; …… woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, “Blessed is the womb …
Luke 17:13kai autois airala fōnan legarōntois; Iēsur epistator, elēasar nin.and raised their voices, shouting, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on …
John 3:8… pneumem hopou thelatō pnatō, kai tan fōnan auteu akouasō, alla ouk oidasē pothen …… where it wishes. You hear its sound, but you do not know where …
John 3:29… akouarōntos autou, chara chairatō dia tan fōnan tou numfiou. houtas oun tas charas …… is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it …
John 5:37… patros ekeinos marturatē peri mu. oute fōnan autou pōpote akouavē oute eidem autou …… Me. You have never heard His voice nor seen His form,
John 10:4… probateim auto akolouthatō, hoti oidalē tan fōnan autou;… follow him because they know his voice.
John 10:5… hoti ouk oidalē toiu allotrioiu tan fōnan.… because they do not recognize his voice.”
Acts 2:14… Petros sun toi hendeka eparata tan fōnan autou kai apofthengeta autoi; Androir Ioudaioir …… with the Eleven, lifted up his voice, and addressed the crowd: “Men of …
Acts 4:24tois de akouarantois homothumadōs airala fōnan pros ton theon kai legala; Despotor, …… heard this, they lifted up their voices to God with one accord. “Sovereign …
Acts 9:4kai piptarantos epi tan gēan akouata fōnan legarōntan auto Saoul Saoul, tinem min …… to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why …
Acts 12:14kai epignōskarantas tan fōnan tou Petrou apo tau charau ouk …When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that she …
Acts 14:11… horarantois hem poiata Paulos eparala tan fōnan autoiu Lukaonisti legarōntois; Tois theois homoiirantois …… had done, they lifted up their voices in the Lycaonian language: “The gods …
Acts 22:9… tem men fōtem theasela tan de fōnan ouk akouala tou lalarōntou mi.… but they could not understand the voice of the One speaking to me.
Acts 22:14… kai horara ton dikaion kai akouara fōnan ek teu stomeu autou,… Righteous One and to hear His voice.
Acts 22:22… houtou tou logou kai eparala tan fōnan autoiu legarōntois; Airasōr apo tau gēau …… statement. Then they lifted up their voices and shouted, “Rid the earth of …
Acts 26:14… katapiptarantoiu nu eis tan gēan akouama fōnan legarōntan pros min ta Hebraida dialekta; …… the ground, and I heard a voice say to me in Hebrew, ‘Saul …
1 Corinthians 14:7“sound”homōs teim apsucheim fōnan dōarōnteim, eite aulos eite kitharas, ean …Even in the case of lifeless instruments, such as the flute or harp, how will …
1 Corinthians 14:8“sound”kai gar ean adēlan fōnan salpingas dōateia, tinos paraskeuazeti eis polemon?Again, if the trumpet sounds a muffled call, who will prepare for battle?
Galatians 4:20… pros vin arti, kai allaxara tan fōnan mu, hoti aporomō en vi.… with you now and change my tone, because I am perplexed about you.
fōnau“voice”of, belonging togenitive singular23×, 22 shown
Luke 17:15… autoiu, horarantos hoti iita, hupostrefata meta fōnau megau doxazarōntos ton theon,… back, praising God in a loud voice.
John 5:25… atō hote tois nekrois akouali tau fōnau tou huiou tou theou kai tois …… when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and …
John 5:28… tois en tei mnēmeiei akouali tau fōnau autou… in their graves will hear His voice
John 10:3… thurōros anoigatō, kai teim probateim tau fōnau autou akouatō kai teim idieim probateim …… and the sheep listen for his voice. He calls his own sheep by …
John 10:16… kakeineim datō min agara, kai tau fōnau mu akouali, kai geneli henas poimnas, …… and they will listen to My voice. Then there will be one flock …
John 10:27teim probateim teim ēmeim tau fōnau mu akoualō, kamis gnōskamō auteim, kai …My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow …
John 18:37… ek tau alētheiau akouatō mu tau fōnau.… to the truth listens to My voice.”
Acts 2:6generantau de tau fōnau houtau sunerchata tem plēthem kai sunchita, …And when this sound rang out, a crowd came together …
Acts 9:7… auto stēalelē eneois, akouarōntois men tau fōnau mēdenon de theōrarōntois.… stood there speechless. They heard the voice but did not see anyone.
Acts 11:7akouama de kai fōnau legarōntau mi; Anastēarantos, Petror, thuasar kai …Then I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Get up, Peter …
Acts 22:7… tē eis tem edafem kai akouama fōnau legarōntau mi; Saoul Saoul, tinem min …… to the ground and heard a voice say to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why …
Acts 24:21“statement”ē peri henau houtau fōnau hau krazama en autoi stēarēntos hoti …… it was this one thing I called out as I stood in their presence: ‘It is concerning the resurrection of the dead that I am …
1 Corinthians 14:11… oun mē oidameiē tan dunamian tau fōnau, emi to lalarōnto barbaros kai tos …… not know the meaning of someone’s language, I am a foreigner to the …
Hebrews 3:7… pneumem tem hagiem; Sēmeron ean tau fōnau autou akouaveia,… says: “Today, if you hear His voice,
Hebrews 3:15en te legorō; Sēmeron ean tau fōnau autou akouaveia, Mē sklērunaveia tain kardiain …… said: “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts, as …
Hebrews 4:7… chronon, kathōs prolegotē, Sēmeron ean tau fōnau autou akouaveia, mē sklērunaveia tain kardiain …… stated: “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.”
2 Peter 1:17… para theou patrou timan kai doxan fōnau ferirantau auto toiosdeau hupo tau megaloprepau …… from God the Father when the voice came to Him from the Majestic …
Revelation 3:20… kai krouamō; ean tinos akouateia tau fōnau mu kai anoigateia tan thuran, kai …… and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will …
Revelation 10:7alla en tai hēmerai tau fōnau tou hebdomou angelou, hotan mellateiō salpizarō, …… seventh angel, when he begins to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God …
Revelation 11:12kai akouala fōnau megau ek tou ouranou legarōntau autoi; …And the witnesses heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Come up here …
Revelation 14:13Kai akouama fōnau ek tou ouranou legarōntau; Grafasar; Makariois …And I heard a voice from heaven telling me to write …
Revelation 16:1Kai akouama megau fōnau ek tou naou legarōntau toi hepta …Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the …
fōna“voice”to, fordative singular33×, 22 shown
Matthew 27:46… tan enatan hōran anaboata tos Iēsus fōna mega legarōntos; Ēli ēli lema sabachthaniasa? …… Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means …
Matthew 27:50tos de Iēsus palin krazarantos fōna mega afiēkata tem pneumem.… cried out again in a loud voice, He yielded up His spirit.
Mark 1:26“voice”… tem pneumem tem akathartem kai fōnarantem fōna mega exerchata ek autou.At this, the unclean spirit threw the man into convulsions and came out with a loud shriek.
Mark 5:7kai krazarantos fōna mega legatō; Tinem mi kai si, …And he shouted in a loud voice, “What do You want with me …
Mark 15:34… ta enata hōra boata tos Iēsus fōna mega; Elōi elōi lema sabachthaniasa? hem …… Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means …
Luke 4:33… echarōntos pneumem daimoneu akatharteu, kai anakrazata fōna mega;… He cried out in a loud voice,
Luke 8:28… ton Iēsun anakrazarantos prospiptata auto kai fōna mega legata; Tinem mi kai si, …… before Him, shouting in a loud voice, “What do You want with me …
Luke 19:37… toiu mathētoiu chairarōntois ainarō ton theon fōna mega peri pantaiu haiu horala dunamiaiu,… praise God joyfully in a loud voice for all the miracles they had …
Luke 23:46kai fōnarantos fōna mega tos Iēsus legata; Patror, eis …… Jesus called out in a loud voice, “Father, into Your hands I commit …
John 11:43kai houteim legarantos fōna mega kraugazata; Lazaror, deuro exō.… He called out in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”
Acts 7:57krazarantois de fōna mega sunechala teim oueim autoiu, kai …… ears, cried out in a loud voice, and rushed together at him.
Acts 7:60titharantos de teim gonueim krazata fōna mega; Kurior, mē stēaseia autoi houtan …… he cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin …
Acts 8:7“voice”… gar toiu echarōntoiu pneumeim akatharteim boarōnteim fōna mega exerchole, pollois de paraluorēntois kai …With loud shrieks, unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, and many of the paralyzed and lame were …
Acts 14:10legata mega fōna; Anastēasar epi toin podoin su orthos; …In a loud voice Paul called out, “Stand up on …
Acts 16:28fōnata de fōna mega tos Paulos legarōntos; Mēdenem prassaseia …… Paul called out in a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself! We are …
Acts 26:24… autou apologorōntou tos Fēstos mega ta fōna fēatō; Mainosō, Paulor; teim polleim sin …… defense, Festus exclaimed in a loud voice, “You are insane, Paul! Your great …
1 Thessalonians 4:16… autos tos kurios en keleusme, en fōna archangelou kai en salpinga theou, katabaineti …… with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the …
Hebrews 12:19kai salpingau ēcho kai fōna rēmeiu, hau tois akouarantois paraitela mē …… a trumpet blast or to a voice that made its hearers beg that …
2 Peter 2:16… idiau paranomiau; hupozugiem afōnem en anthrōpou fōna fthengerantem kōluata tan tou profētou parafronian.… speech, that spoke with a man’s voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.
Revelation 5:2kai horama angelon ischuron kērussarōnton en fōna mega; Tinos axios anoigara tem bibliem …… mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the …
Revelation 5:12legarōntois fōna mega; Axiem atō tem arniem tem …In a loud voice they were saying: “Worthy is the …
Revelation 6:1… ek teiu tessares zōeiu legarōnteu hōs fōna brontau; Erchosōr.… four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!”
fōnais“rumblings”subjectnominative plural6×
Luke 23:23“voices”… aitorōntois auton staurira, kai katischuale tais fōnais autoiu.… were insistent, demanding with loud voices for Jesus to be crucified. And their clamor prevailed.
Revelation 4:5… ek tou thronou ekporeuolō astrapais kai fōnais kai brontais; kai hepta lampadais pureu …… the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings, and peals of thunder. Before the …
Revelation 8:5… tan gēan; kai genela brontais kai fōnais kai astrapais kai seismos.… and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.
Revelation 11:15… tos hebdomos angelos salpizata; kai genela fōnais megais en to ourano legarōntois; Geneta …… angel sounded his trumpet, and loud voices called out in heaven: “The kingdom …
Revelation 11:19… nao autou; kai genela astrapais kai fōnais kai brontais kai seismos kai chalazas …… And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and …
Revelation 16:18kai genela astrapais kai fōnais kai brontais, kai seismos geneta megos, …And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great …
fōnain“voices”objectaccusative plural2×
Acts 13:27“voices”… archontois autoiu houton agnoarantois kai tain fōnain toiu profētoiu tain kata pantem sabbatem …… Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning Him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath.
Revelation 10:3… lalala tais hepta brontais tain heautaiu fōnain.… out, the seven thunders sounded their voices.
fōnaiu“blasts”of, belonging togenitive plural2×
1 Corinthians 14:10tosouteim ei tuchatoia geneim fōnaiu alō en kosmo, kai oudenem afōnem;Assuredly, there are many different languages in the world, yet none of …
Revelation 8:13… epi tau gēau ek taiu loipaiu fōnaiu tau salpingau toiu treis angeloiu toiu …… the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the …
fōnai“voices”to, fordative plural1×
Luke 23:23tois de epikeiole fōnai megai aitorōntois auton staurira, kai katischuale …… they were insistent, demanding with loud voices for Jesus to be crucified. And …