verb
katēgoramō
Strong’sG2723
I accuse, charge, prosecute
stem katēgor-23 times in the New Testamentin 7 of 27 books14 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
κατηγορέω means to accuse or bring a charge against someone 124. It covers accusation in a general sense, as when a person's own conscience or the law itself accuses them 1, and also the more formal sense of prosecuting or making a legal charge before a judge, acting as the plaintiff 12. In this legal use it can take various constructions, naming either the person accused or the specific charge brought against them, and can appear in the passive to describe someone as "the accused" 1. Beyond the biblical usage, the same word in Greek generally can mean to speak against someone before judges, accuse, as the opposite of defending oneself 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
κατηγορέω, -ῶ
(< κατά, ἀγορεύω), [in LXX: Da LXX 6:5(6), I Mac 7:6, 25, II Mac 4:47 10:13, 21, IV Mac 9:14*;]
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G2723 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Saidkat-ay-gor-eh'-o
to be a plaintiff, i.e. to charge with some offence
Fromfrom G2725;
King Jamesaccuse, object.
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
speak against, especially before judges, accuse, opposed to ἀπολογέομαι, with genitive, Refs 5th c.BC+; κ. τινὸς πρὸς τὴν πόλιν denounce him publicly, Refs 5th c.BC+; κατηγόρεις [αὐτῶν] ὡς λέγοιεν you accused them of saying, Refs 5th c.BC+; κ. τινὸς ὅτιRefs 5th c.BC+
2 κ. τί τινος bring as a charge against a person, accuse him of it, δείν᾽ ἔπη μου Refs 5th c.BC+: with infinitive, κ. τινὸς παθεῖν τι Refs 5th c.BC+
3 with accusative of things only, allege in accusation, Refs 5th c.BC+:—passive, to be brought as an accusation against, κατηγορεῖτο τοὐπίκλημα τοῦτό μο; Refs 5th c.BC+; τὰ πρῶτά μου ψευδῆ -ημένα the first false charges brought against me, Refs 5th c.BC+infinitive, σφέων.. κατηγόρητο μηδίζειν a charge had been brought against them that.., Refs 5th c.BC+; κατηγορουμένου δ᾽ αὐτοῦ, ὅτι.. a charge being brought against him, that.., Refs
3.b rarely in passive, of the person, to be accused, οἱ κατηγορούμενοι Refs 5th c.BC+
4 absolutely, to be an accuser, appear as prosecutor, Refs 5th c.BC+
II signify, indicate, prove, c.accusative of things, [τὸ νεαρὸν] κ. τὴν ὀλιγοετίαν Refs 5th c.BC+; display, οἱ πολλὴν -οῦντες ἀπειροκαλίαν Refs 5th c.BC+
II.2 followed by relative, declare, assert, αὐτὸ κατηγορέει τὸ οὔνομα ὡς ἔστι Ἑλληνικόν Refs 5th c.BC+; κ. ὅτι.. Refs 5th c.BC+: absolutely, make a definite assertion, Refs
III in Logic, predicate of a person or thing, τί τινος Refs 4th c.BC+; κυρίως, καταχρηστικῶς κ., Refs 1st c.BC+: —more frequently in passive, to be predicated of.., τινος Refs 4th c.BC+ the predicate, opposed to τὸ ὑποκείμενον (the subject), Refs; κατηγορεῖν καὶ -εῖσθαι to be subject and predicate, Refs
III.2 affirm, opposed to ἀπαρνέομαι, Refs adverb κατηγορουμένως categorically, roundly, Refs 1st 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| katēgoranōκατηγοροῦμεν | happening now · wepresent active indicative 1st person plural | accuse | 1× |
| katēgoravōκατηγορεῖτε | happening now · yepresent active indicative 2nd person plural | charges | 1× |
| katēgoralōκατηγοροῦσίν | happening now · theypresent active indicative 3rd person plural | accuse | 3× |
| katēgorotōκατηγορεῖται | happening now · he/she/itpresent middle or passive indicative 3rd person singular | accused | 1× |
| katēgoraleκατηγόρουν | was happening · theyimperfect active indicative 3rd person plural | accused | 1× |
| katēgoramiκατηγορήσω | will happen · Ifuture active indicative 1st person singular | accuse | 1× |
| katēgoraleiaκατηγορήσωσιν | happened · theyaorist active subjunctive 3rd person plural | accuse | 2× |
| katēgoralōrκατηγορείτωσαν | happening now · theypresent active imperative 3rd person plural | accuse | 1× |
| katēgorarōκατηγορεῖν | happening now · the “to …” formpresent active infinitive | accuse | 6× |
| katēgororōκατηγορεῖσθαι | happening now · the “to …” formpresent middle or passive infinitive | accused | 1× |
| katēgorarōntosκατηγορῶν | happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative singular masculine | accuses | 2× |
| katēgorarōntoisκατηγοροῦντες | happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative plural masculine | accusing | 1× |
| katēgorarōntoiuκατηγορούντων | happening now · of, belonging topresent active participle genitive plural masculine | accusing | 1× |
| katēgororōntosκατηγορούμενος | happening now · subjectpresent middle or passive participle nominative singular masculine | accused | 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, 8 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 | katēgoramō | katēgorame | katēgorami1×κατηγορήσω | katēgorama | katēgoramē | katēgoramelē |
| you 2nd person singular | katēgorasō | katēgorase | katēgorasi | katēgorasa | katēgorasē | katēgoraselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | katēgoratō | katēgorate | katēgorati | katēgorata | katēgoratē | katēgoratelē |
| we 1st person plural | katēgoranō1×κατηγοροῦμεν | katēgorane | katēgorani | katēgorana | katēgoranē | katēgoranelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | katēgoravō1×κατηγορεῖτε | katēgorave | katēgoravi | katēgorava | katēgoravē | katēgoravelē |
| they 3rd person plural | katēgoralō3×κατηγοροῦσίν | katēgorale1×κατηγόρουν | katēgorali | katēgorala | katēgoralē | katēgoralelē |
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 | katēgoromō | katēgorome | katēgoromē | katēgoromelē |
| you 2nd person singular | katēgorosō | katēgorose | katēgorosē | katēgoroselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | katēgorotō1×κατηγορεῖται | katēgorote | katēgorotē | katēgorotelē |
| we 1st person plural | katēgoronō | katēgorone | katēgoronē | katēgoronelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | katēgorovō | katēgorove | katēgorovē | katēgorovelē |
| they 3rd person plural | katēgorolō | katēgorole | katēgorolē | katēgorolelē |
May, might — subjunctive mood, 2 occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | katēgorameiō | katēgorameia | katēgorameiē |
| you 2nd person singular | katēgoraseiō | katēgoraseia | katēgoraseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | katēgorateiō | katēgorateia | katēgorateiē |
| we 1st person plural | katēgoraneiō | katēgoraneia | katēgoraneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | katēgoraveiō | katēgoraveia | katēgoraveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | katēgoraleiō | katēgoraleia2×κατηγορήσωσιν | katēgoraleiē |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | katēgoromeiō | katēgoromeiē |
| you 2nd person singular | katēgoroseiō | katēgoroseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | katēgoroteiō | katēgoroteiē |
| we 1st person plural | katēgoroneiō | katēgoroneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | katēgoroveiō | katēgoroveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | katēgoroleiō | katēgoroleiē |
Commands — imperative mood, 1 occurrence
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | katēgorasōr | katēgorasar | katēgorasēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | katēgoratōr | katēgoratar | katēgoratēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | katēgoravōr | katēgoravar | katēgoravēr |
| they 3rd person plural | katēgoralōr1×κατηγορείτωσαν | katēgoralar | katēgoralēr |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | katēgorosōr | katēgorosēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | katēgorotōr | katēgorotēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | katēgorovōr | katēgorovēr |
| they 3rd person plural | katēgorolōr | katēgorolēr |
Wishes — optative mood, no occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | katēgoramoiō | katēgoramoia |
| you 2nd person singular | katēgorasoiō | katēgorasoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | katēgoratoiō | katēgoratoia |
| we 1st person plural | katēgoranoiō | katēgoranoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | katēgoravoiō | katēgoravoia |
| they 3rd person plural | katēgoraloiō | katēgoraloia |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | katēgoromoiō |
| you 2nd person singular | katēgorosoiō |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | katēgorotoiō |
| we 1st person plural | katēgoronoiō |
| ye 2nd person plural | katēgorovoiō |
| they 3rd person plural | katēgoroloiō |
The “to …” form — infinitive, 7 occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | katēgorarō6×κατηγορεῖν | katēgorari | katēgorara | katēgorarē |
| acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice | katēgororō1×κατηγορεῖσθαι | katēgororē |
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 | katēgorarōntos4×κατηγορῶν | katēgorarintos | katēgorarantos | katēgorarēntos |
| acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice | katēgororōntos1×κατηγορούμενος | katēgororēntos |
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
katēgor 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.
23 occurrences, every one of them listed
katēgoranō“accuse”happening now · wepresent active indicative 1st person plural1×
Acts 24:8“accuse”… peri panteiu houteiu epignōskara heiu nis katēgoranō autou.… the truth about all our charges against him.”
katēgoravō“charges”happening now · yepresent active indicative 2nd person plural1×
Luke 23:14… en to anthrōpo houto aitiem heiu katēgoravō kata autou.… found Him not guilty of your charges against Him.
katēgoralō“accuse”happening now · theypresent active indicative 3rd person plural3×
Mark 15:4… Ouk apokrinosō oudenem? ide poseim su katēgoralō.… You no answer? Look how many charges they are bringing against You!”
Acts 24:13“making against”… parastēara dunolō si peri heiu nuni katēgoralō mu.Nor can they prove to you any of their charges against me.
Acts 25:11“accuse”… ei de oudenem atō heiu houtois katēgoralō mu, oudenos min dunotō autoi charizera; …… to die. But if there is no truth to their accusations against me, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal …
katēgorotō“accused”happening now · he/she/itpresent middle or passive indicative 3rd person singular1×
Acts 22:30… boulorōntos gnōskara tem asfalem tem tinem katēgorotō hupo toiu Ioudaioiu luata auton, kai …… learn the real reason Paul was accused by the Jews, released him and …
katēgorale“accused”was happening · theyimperfect active indicative 3rd person plural1×
Mark 15:3“accused”kai katēgorale autou tois archierevois polleim.And the chief priests began to accuse Him of many things.
katēgorami“accuse”will happen · Ifuture active indicative 1st person singular1×
John 5:45mē dokavōr hoti mis katēgorami vu pros ton patron; atō tos …Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser …
katēgoraleia“accuse”happened · theyaorist active subjunctive 3rd person plural2×
Matthew 12:10… Ei exestinatō tei sabbatei therapeuarō? hina katēgoraleia autou.… hand was there. In order to accuse Jesus, they asked Him, “Is it …
Mark 3:2… ei tei sabbatei therapeuati auton, hina katēgoraleia autou.In order to accuse Jesus, they were watching to see …
katēgoralōr“accuse”happening now · theypresent active imperative 3rd person plural1×
Acts 25:5… tinem atō en to andro atopem katēgoralōr autou.… leaders come down with me and accuse him there.”
katēgorarō“accuse”happening now · the “to …” formpresent active infinitive6×
Luke 6:7… en te sabbate therapeuatō, hina heuriskaleia katēgorarō autou.Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, the scribes and Pharisees were …
Luke 23:2archela de katēgorarō autou legarōntois; Houton heuriskana diastrefarōnton tem …And they began to accuse Him, saying, “We found this man …
John 8:6“accuse”… de legale peirazarōntois auton, hina echaleiō katēgorarō autou. tos de Iēsus katō kuptarantos …They said this to test Him, in order to have a basis for accusing Him. But Jesus bent down and began …
Acts 24:2“accuse”kalirantou de autou archeta katēgorarō tos Tertullos legarōntos; Pollau eirēnau tucharōntois …… called in, Tertullus opened the prosecution: “Because of you, we have enjoyed a lasting peace, and your …
Acts 24:19… hoin date epi su pareiarō kai katēgorarō ei tinem echaloiō pros min,… ought to appear before you and bring charges, if they have anything against me.
Acts 28:19… hōs teu ethneu mu echarōntos tinem katēgorarō.… Caesar, even though I have no charge to bring against my nation.
katēgororō“accused”happening now · the “to …” formpresent middle or passive infinitive1×
Matthew 27:12kai en te katēgororō auton hupo toiu archierevoiu kai presbuteroiu …And when He was accused by the chief priests and elders …
katēgorarōntos“accuses”happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative singular masculine2×
John 5:45“accuses”… vu pros ton patron; atō tos katēgorarōntos vu Mōusos, eis hon vis elpizavē.… will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, in whom you have put your hope.
Revelation 12:10… tos katēgōros toiu adelfoiu nu, tos katēgorarōntos autoin enōpion tou theou nu hēmerau …… has been thrown down — he who accuses them day and night before our …
katēgorarōntois“accusing”happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative plural masculine1×
Luke 23:10… tois archierevois kai tois grammatevois eutonōs katēgorarōntois autou.… priests and scribes stood there, vehemently accusing Him.
katēgorarōntoiu“accusing”happening now · of, belonging topresent active participle genitive plural masculine1×
Romans 2:15… suneidēsiau kai metaxu allēloiu toiu logismoiu katēgorarōntoiu ē kai apologorōntoiu,… bearing witness, and their thoughts either accusing or defending them
katēgororōntos“accused”happening now · subjectpresent middle or passive participle nominative singular masculine1×
Acts 25:16“accused”… charizorō tinon anthrōpon prin ē tos katēgororōntos kata prosōpem echatoiō toin katēgoroin topon …… is not the Roman custom to hand a man over before he has had an opportunity to face his accusers and defend …